Urs Stahel studied German Literature and Linguistics, History and Philosophy at the University of Zurich. After graduating, he worked as an editor for "Der Alltag" and for the art magazine "du," as an art critic for "Weltwoche" and for "ART" in Hamburg, and as a freelance publicist and curator. 1986-92 Lecturer at the Höhere Schule für Gestaltung in Zurich. 1986 Co-founder of the Kunsthalle Zürich. 1993 Co-founder of Fotomuseum Winterthur. 1993-2013 Director and curator of Fotomuseum Winterthur. 2000-2003 Co-founder and curator of the Coalmine in Winterthur.
Since 2013 he has worked independently as a curator, author, lecturer and consultant - as curator mainly for the Fondazione MAST in Bologna, for which he is also building up the collection of industrial and work related photography. As a consultant for the Art Vontobel art collection in Zurich and for Foto Colectania in Barcelona, as President for Spectrum - Photography in Switzerland (2014-2020). Lecturer/visiting professor/visiting fellow for ZHdK (2013-2018), University of Zurich (2014-2015), University of Lucerne (2018) and for London College of Communication (2017-2019). In 2015 he was awarded the Prix Meret Oppenheim/Grand Prix Swiss Art, and in 2019 he received an honorary doctorate from the Faculty of Culture and Social Sciences at the University of Lucerne.
He is curator of many exhibitions and author/editor of numerous books (see extended full CV).
- curating exhibitions at Fondazione MAST in Bologna
- building up a collection of photography of industry, techology and work at Fondazione MAST in Bologna
- adviser to Art Vontobel in Zürich and to Foto Colectania in Barcelona
- several curatorial and text projects
2022 – | Lecturer team of the Certificate of Advanced Studies in Theory and History of Photography at University of Zurich |
2017 – 2020 | Visiting fellow of the University of Arts, London |
2017 | Lecturer at University of Lucerne |
2014 – | Consultant to the art collection of Vontobel |
2014 – 2021 | Member of Volkart Fachkommission on Photography |
2014 – 2020 | President Spectrum - Photography in Switzerland |
2014 | Visiting Professor at University of Zurich |
2013 – | Curator of MAST – Manifattura di Arti, Sperimentazione e Tecnologia in Bologna / Consultant of the MAST collection of industrial photography |
2013 – 2018 | Lecturer at the ZHdK, Zurich |
1993 – 2013 | Co-Founder of Fotomuseum Winterthur, Director and Curator |
1986 | Co-founder of Kunsthalle Zürich (until 1996 board member) |
1982 – 1992 | Freelance curator and art critic, editor of art magazine «du», «Der Alltag» and lecturer in history of art and photography at the School of Art and Design in Zurich. |
1981 | Masters degree in Germanistik (Literature and Linguistic), History and Philosophy (Liz.Phil.I.) |
2019 | Honorary doctorate / Ehrendoktor, Universität Luzern / University of Lucerne, Switzerland |
2015 | Prix Meret Oppenheim (Swiss Grand Prix of Arts) |
1998 | UBS Jubiläumsstiftung |
2021 – 2022 | Face Control, Foto Colectania, Barcelona |
2021 | Richard Mosse: Displaced. Fondazione MAST, Bologna |
2020 | André Cepeda: Ballad of Today. Maat, Lisbon |
2020 | Walead Beshty: Industrial Portraits. MAST, Bologna |
2020 | Uniform. MAST, Bologna |
2020 | MAST Foundation Grant of Photography, Bologna |
2019 | Kelvin Haizel - Babysitting a Shark in a Cold Room. Winner of A New Gaze 2 - Vontobel Photography Prize. Vontobel, Zürich |
2019 | Thomas Struth: Nature & Politics. MAST, Bologna |
2019 | Anthropocene - Edward Burtynsky, Jennifer Baichwal, Nicolas de Pencier. MAST, Bologna |
2018 | Pendulum - Moving Goods, Moving Peolpe (in photographs from the MAST collection), MAST Bologna |
2018 | W. Eugene Smith: Pittsburgh, MAST Bologna |
2018 | MAST Foundation Grant for Photography 2018 (Mari Bastashevski, Sara Cwynar, Sohei Nishino, Christóbal Olivares). MAST, Bologna |
2018 | Pendulum - Moving Goods, Moving Images. MAST, Bologna |
2017 | Thomas Ruff: Machine & Energy. MAST, Bologna |
2017 | Lavoro in movimento, video exhibition. MAST, Bologna |
2017 | Eva O'Leary: Concealer, Vontobel, Zürich |
2017 | Lewis Baltz (retrospectiv), Mapfre Foundation, Madrid |
2017 | Power of Images. MAST Bologna |
2016 | Dayanita Singh: Museum of Machines. MAST, Bologna |
2016 | Luigi Ghirri, Mai 36 Gallery, Zurich |
2016 | Jakob Tuggener: Factory 1933-1953 (co-curated with Martin Gasser), MAST Bologna |
2016 | A Tile, Some Milk, A Machine and Logistics – Photographs of Emilia-Romagna at Work. MAST, Bologna |
2015 | E.O. Hoppé: Unveiling a secret. MAST, Bologna |
2015 | Industry Now. MAST, Bologna |
2015 | GD4PhotoArt Award. MAST, Bologna |
2015 | (7P) - 7 Places, 7 Precarious Fields. FF FotoFestival. 7 Museums/Artspaces in Mannheim, Ludwigshafen, Heidelberg |
2015 | Dall‘ Album al Libro - L’Industria Italiana nell’Editoria Fotografica. MAST, Bologna |
2014 | David Lynch: Factory Photographs (co-curated with Petra Gilroy). MAST, Bologna |
2014 | Industrial Worlds 2. MAST, Bologna |
2014 | HR - Human Capital. MAST, Bologna |
2013 | Sharon Ya’ari: Leaning towards myself. Tel Aviv Museum of Art |
2013 | Industrial Worlds. MAST, Bologna |
2012 | Amar Kanwar – Evidence. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2011 | Shirana Shabazi: Much like Zero. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2011 | Ai Weiwei – Interlacing. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2010 | Stefan Burger – Under the circumstances. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2009 | Darkside II – Photographic Power and Violence, Disease and Death Photographed. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2008 | Darkside I – Photographic Desire and Sexuality Photographed. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2007 | Zoe Leonard – Photographs. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2007 | David Goldblatt – South African Photographs 1952-2006. Fotomuseum Winterthur (Co-Curator with Martin Parr) |
2006 | Real Fantasies – New Photography from Switzerland. Fotomuseum Winterthur (Co-Curator) |
2005 – 2006 | Simultanuous – Two Collections of Austrian Photography. From the Collections of the Federal Chancellery and the Museum der Moderne Salzburg. Museum der Moderne Salzburg / Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2005 | Hans Danuser. The Manesh, Moscow |
2005 | Robert Frank – Storylines. Fotomuseum Winterthur/Fotostiftung Schweiz (Co-Curator) |
2005 | Rineke Dijkstra – Portrait. Fotomuseum Winterthur (Co-Curator) |
2005 | Life and Death in Bénin – African Photographers from the Alex Van Gelder Collection. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2005 | Trans Emilia – The Linea di Confine Collection. A Territorial Reconaissance of the Emilia Romagna (With Marina Ballo Charmet , Lewis Baltz, Olivo Barbieri, Andrea Botto, Michele Buda, John Davies, Paola De Pietri, Gilbert Fastenaekens, John Gossage, William Guerrieri, Guido Guidi, Axel Hütte, Gianluca Liverani, Walter Niedermayr, Stephen Shore and Marco Signorini. Fotomuseum Winterthur; Palazzo Magnani, Reggio-Emilia (Co- Curator) |
2004 | Arnold Odermatt – Collisions. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2004 | The Ecstasy of Things – From the Functional Object to the Fetish in 20th Century Photographs. Fotomuseum Winterthur / Fotostiftung Schweiz (Co-Curator) |
2004 | The Dream of Myself, the Dream of the World – Set 2 from the collection of the Fotomuseum Winterthur (Co-Curator) |
2003 | Boris Mikhailov – Private pleasures, the burdens of boredom, public decay – a retrospective. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2003 | Valérie Jouve – Résonances. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2003 | Roni Horn – If on a Winter’s Night … Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2003 | Anders Petersen – «Ich Dich lieben, Du mich auch?". Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2003 | Order & Chaos (With Sonja Braas, Nanna Hänninen, Marjaana Kella, Inés Lombardi, Marianne Müller, Juha Nenonen, Sophy Rickett und Janaina Tschäpe). Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2002 | Hans-Peter Feldmann: Art Exhibition. Fotomuseum Winterthur (Co-Curator) |
2002 | Phoebee Maas – Moments In-Between. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2002 | Joachim Brohm – Areal. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2002 | Claudio Moser – Walk On. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2002 | Luigi Ghirri – Photographs 1969-1992. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2002 | Chic Clicks – Creativity and Commerce in Contemporary Fashion Photography. Fotomuseum Winterthur (Co-Curator) |
2001 | Jitka Hanzlová – Rokytnik, Inhabitants. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2001 | Dunja Evers – Constellations. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2001 | Hans Danuser – Frost. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2001 | Trade – Commodities, Communication, and Consciousness in World Trade Today. Fotomuseum Winterthur (Co-Curator) |
2000 | Karl Blossfeldt – Forms of Nature. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2000 | Wendy Ewald – Secret Games. Collaborative Projects with Children 1969-1999. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2000 | Takashi Homma – Tokyo Suburbia. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2000 | Daido Moriyama – Stray Dog. Fotomuseum Winterthur (Co-Curator) |
2000 | Remake Berlin (Clegg&Guttmann, Remy Markowitsch, Jürgen Teller, Frank Thiel, Boris Mikhailov, Stephan Wilks, Astrid Klein, Céline van Baalen). Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2000 | Hybrid (with: David Deutsch, Philip-Lorca diCorcia, Katrin Freisager, Annika von Hausswolff, Isabell Heimerdinger, Hans Hemmert, Jörg Sasse and Günther Selichar). Fotomuseum Winterthur / Rencontres International, Arles |
2000 | Remake Berlin (Clegg&Guttmann, Remy Markowitsch, Jürgen Teller, Frank Thiel, Boris Mikhailov, Stephan Wilks, Astrid Klein, Céline van Baalen). Fotomuseum Winterthur, NBK Berlin, Rencontres Internationales, Arles |
1999 | Fazal Sheikh: Afghanistan – The victor weeps. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1999 | Henry Bond – The Cult of the Street. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1999 | Adam Fuss – Less of a test than earth. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1999 | Unheimlich (Uncanny – Unheimlich) (Vanessa Beecroft – Anna Gaskell – Dana Hoey – Natacha Lesueur – Wendy McMurdo). Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1999 | Unheimlich (Uncanny – Unheimlich) (Vanessa Beecroft – Anna Gaskell – Dana Hoey – Natacha Lesueur – Wendy McMurdo). Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1999 | Young – New Photography in Swiss Art. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1998 | Andreas Gursky – Photographs 1994-1998. Fotomuseum Winterthur (Co-Curator) |
1998 | Nicolas Faure – From One Switzerland to Another. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1998 | Nan Goldin – I ́ll be your mirror. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1997 | Axel Hütte – Theorea. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1997 | Bilderzauber (The Magic of Images – A Serious Gam) (With Ian Anüll, Martin Blum, Daniele Buetti, Fischli/Weiss, Rémy Markowitsch, Gérald Minkoff, Markus Raetz, Hannes Rickli, Christoph Rütimann, Adrian Schiess, Laurent Schmid, Hugo Suter, Bernard Voïta, Cécile Wick). Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1997 | Weltenblick / World Views – Reportage Photography and its Medias. Fotomuseum Winterthur (Co-Curator) |
1997 | Berge Versetzen / Moving Mountains – Girola ́s Power Stations in the Alps. Fotomuseum Winterthur (Co-Curator) |
1997 | Photography after Photography. Fotomuseum Winterthur (Co-Curator) |
1996 | Herkunft? (Origin?) (Gosbert Adler, Tina Barney, Richard Billingham, Fazal Sheikh, Carrie Mae Weems, Anthony Hernandez). Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1995 | Jean-Louis Garnell: Werke 1985-95. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1995 | Seiichi Furuya – Mémoires. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1994 | Peter Hujar – A Retrospective. Fotomuseum Winterthur / Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam (Co-Curator) |
1994 | Gilles Peress – Farewell to Bosnia. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1994 | Ed van der Elsken – Once Upon a Time. Fotomuseum Winterthur (Co-Curator) |
1994 | Gilles Peress – Farewell to Bosnia. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1994 | Peter Hujar – A Retrospective. Fotomuseum Winterthur (Co- Curator) |
1994 | Industriebild (Industrial Image). Fotomuseum Winterthur (Co-Curator) |
1993 | Paul Graham – New Europe. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1993 | Lewis Baltz: Rule without Exception. Fotomuseum Winterthur (Co-Curator) |
1993 | William Eggleston, Photographs. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1993 | Paul Graham – New Europe. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1993 | Aus der Romandie. Fotomuseum Winterthur |
1990 | Wichtige Bilder – Fotografie in der Schweiz (Important Images – Photography from Switzerland), Museum für Gestaltung, Zürich |
1989 | Gerhard Merz - Costruire. Kunsthalle Zürich |
1988 | Zart – Zurich Art. Stadtpark Graz |
1987 | Open End – Young Swiss Art, Kunsthaus Nürnberg, Städtische Galerie Erlangen and various galeries in the area, 1987 |
2020 | André Cepeda: Ballad of Today. Pierre von Kleist |
2019 | Walter Keller - Beruf: Verleger. Edition Patrick Frey (Ed. together with Miriam Wiesel) |
2018 | Giorgio Wolfensberger: Foto Povera. Edition Patrick Frey |
2016 | Lewis Baltz. Göttingen 2016 |
2015 | [7P] -- [7] Orte [7] Prekäre Felder / [7] Places [7] Precarious Fields. Heidelberg 2015 |
2012 | Amar Kanwar - Evidence. Göttingen 2012 (Co-Editor) |
2012 | Rosângela Rennó: Frutos estranhos / Seltsame Früchte / Strange Fruits. Lisbon, Winterthur 2012. Eds. Isabel Carlos, Nuno Crespo, Rosângela Rennó, Urs Stahel |
2011 | Ai Weiwei, Interlacing, Göttingen 2011 (Co-Editor) |
2010 | Where Three Dreams Cross – Photography from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Fotomuseum Winterthur (Co-Curator) |
2010 | Stefan Burger: Sehr sehr dünne Suppe - very very thin soup. Winterthur/Basel. Eds. Urs Stahel / Sabine Saschl |
2009 | Darkside II. Fotografische Macht und fotografierte Gewalt, Krankheit und Tod. Photographic Power and Violence, Disease and Death Photographed. Winterthur, Göttingen 2009 |
2008 | Darkside I. Fotografische Begierde und fotografierte Sexualität - Photographic Desire and Sexuality Photographed. Winterthur/Göttingen 2008 |
2007 | Zoe Leonard - Fotografien / Photographs. Winterthur/Göttingen 2007 |
2006 | Reale Fantasien / Real Fantasies. Neue Fotografie aus der Schweiz / New Photography from Switzerland. Eds. Urs Stahel / Thomas Seelig. Winterthur / Basel 2006 |
2005 | Essays über Robert Frank. Winterthur / Göttingen 2005. Hrsg. /Eds. Martin Gasser, Urs Stahel, Peter Pfrunder, Thomas Seelig |
2005 | Simultan. Österreichische Fotografie seit 1945. Wien 2005 |
2005 | Trans Emilia - Sammlung Linea di Confine: Territoriales Erkunden der Emilia-Romagna. Winterthur/Basel 2005. Eds. Urs Stahel / Thomas Seelig |
2004 | The Ecstasy of Things. From the Functional Object to the Fetish in 20th Century Photographs. Winterthur / Göttingen 2004. Eds. Urs Stahel / Thomas Seelig |
2004 | Im Rausch der Dinge. Winterthur / Göttingen 2004. Eds. Urs Stahel / Thomas Seelig |
2003 | Order & Chaos. Winterthur 2003 |
2003 | Boris Mikhailov: A Retrospective. Winterthur/Göttingen 2003 |
2003 | If on a winter's night ... Roni Horn. Winterthur / Göttingen 2003 |
2003 | Anders Petersen: "Ich Dich lieben, Du mich auch?" Winterthur 2002 |
2003 | Urs Stahel: Ja, was ist sie denn, die Fotografie? Winterthur 2003 |
2003 | Urs Stahel: Well, what is Photography? Winterthur 2003 |
2002 | Claudio Moser: Walk On. Winterthur/Basel2002 |
2001 | Dunja Evers – Zustände / Constellations. Göttingen 2001. Eds. Stefan Gronert / Urs Stahel |
2001 | Jitka Hanzlová - Bewohner. Winterthur 2001 |
2001 | Trade - Commodities, Communication, and Consciousness in World Trade Today. Winterthur / Zürich. Eds. Urs Stahel / Thomas Seelig / Martin Jaeggi |
2001 | Trade - Waren, Wege und Werte im Welthandel heute. Winterthur / Göttingen 2001. Eds. Urs Stahel / Thomas Seelig / Martin Jaeggi |
2000 | Hybrid (with: David Deutsch, Philip-Lorca diCorcia, Katrin Freisager, Annika von Hausswolff, Isabell Heimerdinger, Hans Hemmert, Jörg Sasse and Günther Selichar). Fotomuseum Winterthur |
2000 | Remake Berlin. Göttingen 2000. Eds. Kathrin Becker / Urs Stahel |
1999 | Young - Neue Fotografie in der Schweizer Kunst. Winterthur / Basel 1999 |
1999 | Uncanny / Unheimlich. With works by Vanessa Beecroft, Anna Gaskell, Dana Hoey, Natacha Lesueur, Wendy McMurdo. Winterthur 1999 |
1998 | Nicolas Faure: Von einer Schweiz zur anderen / De Suisse en Suisse. Winterthur / Zürich-Berlin-New York |
1997 | Berge Versetzen - Girolas Kraftwerke in den Alpen. Scheidegger & Spiess. Eds. Michael Jakob und Urs Stahel |
1997 | Weltenblicke - Reportagefotografie und ihre Medien. Winterthur 1997. Eds. Martin Gasser / Urs Stahel |
1997 | Axel Hütte – Theorea. Winterthur / München 1997 |
1997 | Herkunft? / Origins - Gosbert Adler, Tina Barney, Richard Billingham, Anthony Hernandez, Fazal Sheikh, Carrie Mae Weems. Winterthur 1997 |
1996 | Bilderzauber: ein seriöses Spiel. Winterthur 1996 |
1995 | Jean-Louis Garnell, Werke 1985-95. Winterthur 1995 |
1995 | Seiichi Furuya: 1995 Mémoires. Winterthur / Göttingen 1995 |
1994 | Peter Hujar: Eine Retrospektive / a retrospective. Scalo Publisher. Eds. Hripsimé Visser / Urs Stahel |
1994 | Industriebild: der Wirtschaftsraum Ostschweiz in Fotografien von 1870 bis heute. Winterthur / Zürich 1994. Eds. Urs Stahel / Giorgio Wolfensberger |
1993 | Aus der Romandie. Winterthur 1993. With works by Jacques Berthet, Laurence Bonvin, Silvie & Chérif Defraoui, Deluxe, Nicolas Faure, Alan Humrose, Jean-Pascal Imsand, Eric Lanz, Ursula Mumenthaler, Alexandra Rajic, Olivier Richon, and Maurice Vouga. |
1993 | Lewis Baltz: Regel ohne Ausnahme. |
1993 | Paul Graham: New Europe. Winterthur 1993 |
1990 | Wichtige Bilder - Fotografie in der Schweiz. Zürich 1990. Eds. Urs Stahel / Martin Heller |
1988 | ZART - Fünf Künstler aus Zürich. Winterthur / Graz 1988 |
1987 | Offenes Ende – Junge Schweizer Kunst. Schweizer Kunst in Nürnberg und Erlangen. Verlag für Moderne Kunst, 1987 |
2021 | Richard Mosse: Displaced. Fondazione MAST, Bologna |
2019 | LCC, London College of Communication, London |
2019 | University of Luzern, Lucerne |
2019 | Raffles School of Design, Graphics and Photography, Milano |
2019 | CCA, Tel Aviv |
2018 | Photographers' Gallery, London |
2018 | Darmstädter Fototage, Darmstadt |
2017 | Bocconi University, Milano |
2017 | University of Luzern |
2016 | MAXXI, Rome |
2016 | University of Toronto |
2014 | University of Zurich |
2014 | Gesellschaft für Deutsche Photographiem, Berlin |
2013 – 2018 | Zurich University of Arts |
2013 | University of Rome, La Sapienza |
2013 | Photo Festival, Delhi |
2013 | Fotofestival Landskrona, Schweden |
2011 | India International Centre (IIC), Delhi |
2011 | University of Lausanne |
2011 | Centrum for Fotografi, Stockholm |
2008 | Macedonian Center of Photography, Skopje |
1995 – 2005 | Triennale of Photography, Hamburg Ludwig Museum, Cologne Academy of Architecture, Gerona Academy of Art and Architecture, Venice Humboldt University, Berlin Kulturhuseet, Stockholm etc. |
2019 | Jury member, Vontobel Photography Prize |
2019 | Jury member, Österreichischer Staatspreis für die Fotografie, Wien |
2018 | Jury member, MAST Foundation Grant for Photography, Bologna |
2017 | Jury chair, Umrao Singh Sher-Gil Grant for Photography, Delhi |
2013 | Jury member, Aimia AGO Photography Prize (The Grange Prize), Toronto |
2008 | Jury member Hyères Festival of Photography and Fashion |
2007 | Jury member Deutsche Börse Prize, London |
2006 | Austrian Photography Prize, Vienna 2006 |
2006 | Fotopres, Barcelona 2006 and 2007 |
2005 | Jury Member, La Vision du Réel, documentary film festival, Nyon |
2003 | Jury member Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie, Arles |
2002 | Jury member Hasselblad Award, Gothenburg |
1999 | Jury member, Spectrum Prize, Sprengel Museum Hannover, Hannover |
1998 | Jury member, Albert Renger-Patzsch-Price, Essen |
1986 – 1996 | Co-founder of Kunsthalle Zurich and board member |
etc. |