Olivia Heussler

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Olivia Heussler (2009)

Olivia Heussler (* 1957 in Zurich ) is an independent Swiss photographer. Among other things, she documented the youth riots in Zurich in the 1980s, the Nicaraguan revolution in 1978/79 and other liberation movements.

life and work

Olivia heussler.jpg

Heussler grew up with her sister in an artist family in the Zollikerberg. Her father manufactured the first removable frames and showcases for housing assistance (now housing needs) and was a co-founder of the Zürcher Theater Spektakel and the Christmas lights on Bahnhofstrasse. Her grandmother was the famous painter and sculptor Alis Guggenheim and her grandfather the painter Ernst Georg Heussler.

Heussler studied in 1988 as an intern in the photography class at the Zurich School of Design and lived for a time in the 1990s as a scholarship holder at the Cité Internationale des Arts Paris . In her photo essays she shows, among other things, the youth riots in Zurich in 1980, war and peace in Nicaragua , the situation in Israel and Palestine , the Kurds in Turkey, Kurdistan , and the human rights situation in Latin America. Heussler's works include pictorial essays from Eastern Europe , Sudan , Tanzania , Honduras , Chile and Pakistan . Her photographs are represented in public and private collections and are shown in international exhibitions. Olivia Heussler teaches photography.

Political and ideological engagement

“You don't have to photograph the battlefield to show what war is. I document what these movements trigger. I can show this most clearly with those affected, on whose side I stand. "

- Olivia Heussler

“As a photographer, it is my job to teach those affected to take photos themselves. … This is what I mean by development aid: giving people tools and instructions so that they can work independently. Photography is very well suited for such autonomy processes , not least because of the widespread illiteracy . "

- Olivia Heussler

Olivia Heussler also sees her photography as self-directed human rights work. In choosing the locations for the action, she does not follow the general media-directed attention, but pursues her own interests in a self-determined manner. Heussler travels independently, often in cooperation with foreign human rights activists from other professions as well as with local volunteers. This is how the important works on Kurdistan as well as on Palestine and Nicaragua emerged , which could be viewed in numerous galleries and museums.

Solo exhibitions

  • 1986 Nicaragua , producers' gallery, Zurich
  • 1987 Nicaragua , Galería Fernando Gordillo, Managua
  • 1988 Nicaragua , Nikon Live Gallery, Zurich
  • 1991 From time to time , Galerie Mitte, Dresden
  • 1991 Bildbruchbild , University of Zurich
  • 1993 Beyond Jerusalem , Photoforum PasquArt, Biel
  • 1994 Femmes occupées , Saint Gervais, Geneva
  • 1995 Femmes occupées , Mois de la Photo, Bratislava
  • 1996 Zone of conflicts , Zafta Municipality, Haifa
  • 1996 From time to time , Galleria La Rada, Locarno
  • 2002 Vies des femmes , Federal Office for Refugees BFF, Bern
  • 2002 Vies des femmes , segment gallery at the OSCE court, United Nations headquarters, Vienna
  • 2003 Via Gottardo , Leica Gallery, Biel
  • 2003 Via Gottardo , National Museum, Sankt Gotthard, hospice
  • 2009 The dream of Solentiname Kunstraum Winterthur
  • 2010 Zurich, summer 1980 , Message salon , Zurich
  • 2014 Zurich . Photobastei, Zurich
  • 2017 Contres Pouvoirs , Halle au Blé, Altkirch, France
  • 2019 Zurich, the 80s , Residence of the Swiss Ambassador, Photo Month Belgrade, Serbia

Book publications

  • from time to time . Exhibition catalog. Dresden 1991.
  • Beyond Jerusalem, Out of Jerusalem. Texts: Martin Woker, Ruchama Marton, Sumaya Farhat-Naser. Benteli, Bern 1993, ISBN 3-7165-0896-9 . (German English)
  • Shift change: a day in the working world in Switzerland. Photos by Olivia Heussler. Rotpunktverlag, Zurich 1996, ISBN 3-85869-135-6 .
  • Gotthard: the obstacle connects. Marc Valance, Mic T. Ganz. Photos by Olivia Heussler. Werd Verlag, Zurich 2003, ISBN 3-85932-451-9 .
  • The dream of Solentiname / The dream of Solentiname. Nicaragua 1984–2007 photography. With texts by Sergio Ramirez, Martin Heller and Olivia Heussler. Edition Patrick Frey, Zurich, 2009, ISBN 978-3-905509-79-3 . (German English)
  • Zurich, summer 1980 photography. With a text by Stefan Zweifel. Edition Patrick Frey, Zurich 2010, ISBN 978-3-905509-89-2 . (German English)
  • El sueño de Solentiname / The Dream of Solentiname. Fotografias Nicaragua 1984-2007 Edición en Español y Inglés con un Prologo de Sergio Ramirez Mercado y un Epilogo de Martin Heller, by IHNCA-UCA, Managua, Nicaragua 2010, ISBN 978-99924-986-4-4 .

Captions as examples of works

The comprehensive documentation volume Das Bild der Menschenrechte contains the following works by Olivia Heussler:

Prohibition of discrimination : Czech Republic, Brno / Brünn, 1992: "Death for Gipsies!" (P. 109 above), Guatemala, 1985: An action by the women's group Grupo de Apoyo Mutuo (mutual support group) (p. 143 above), Honduras, Tegucigalpa, April 1984: A meeting of generals of the Honduran army (p. 143 below), Switzerland, Zurich, March 1993: Refugees from Sri Lanka during German lessons (p. 149), right to private life : Italy, Brindisi, 1992: police raid in District il Paradiso (p. 339 above), Right to Work : Pakistan, Quetta, 2001: Three Hazara children work as carpet weavers, ten hours a day, seven days a week and for $ 30 a month (p. 511), Nicaragua, Mulukukú, 1994: women of the Maria Luisa Ortiz cooperative in their carpentry (p. 516), protection of property : Switzerland, Zurich, 1988; Allotment garden (p. 531 above), right to a fair trial and prohibition of torture : Turkey, Ankara, December 1990: Judge Muhittin Mihcak during a trial against three Kurdish lawyers (p. 584 below), Guatemala, Guatemala City, 1985: on a public Place people in front of a list of missing persons (p. 605 below), right to freedom of expression and political rights : Romania, Sibiu, May 20, 1990: The Mihai Roma family is voting for the first time (p. 646), Romania , Sibiu, May 20, 1990: Ms. Mihai, a Roma, is voting for the first time in forty years (p. 653 above).

Videos

  • Fredy Meier - Fluchtkanal: the Zurich movement activist in conversation with Hans Haldimann June 28, 1988 (together with Hans Haldimann ). Zurich 1988, 1 DVD video, parts 1–2; Production: Olivia Heussler.
  • Cada dia historia production; Onixfilms: Gabrielle Baur, Kristina Konrad
  • Polo de Yale, Nicaragua 1986 (with Felix Zurita), 1986, 1 DVD-Video; Production: Gabrielle Baur, Kristina Konrad, Olivia Heussler, Felix Zurita.
  • Death of Yvan Leyvraz Nicaragua, 1986
  • Nacatamales 7 ' , 1996 Esteli Nicaragua
  • Pollo deshuesado 7 ' , 1996 Esteli, Nicaragua
  • Olivia Heussler, independent photographer . 2017 Zurich CH

Web links

Commons : Olivia Heussler  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual references and sources

  1. Jump up ↑ Beyond Jerusalem, Out of Jerusalem . Benteli, Bern 1993, p. 7.
  2. Jump up ↑ Beyond Jerusalem, Out of Jerusalem. Pp. 8-9.
  3. ↑ Walter Kälin, Lars Müller, Judith Wyttenbach (ed.): The image of human rights. Lars Müller Publishers, Baden 2004, ISBN 3-03778-035-5 .
  4. ^ A b Online catalog of the IDS Zurich Central Library / NEBIS, Zurich Social Archive
  5. ↑ Cada dia historia. In: www.onixfilms.com. Retrieved September 16, 2019 .
  6. ↑ Entry at the Swiss Photo Foundation
  7. ↑ Nicaraguan traditional recipe Nacatamales, Nicaragua Central America. In: YouTube.com. April 14, 2011, accessed on September 16, 2019 .
  8. ↑ Traditional chicken recipe. Pollo deshuesado, Nicaragua Central America. In: YouTube.com. April 14, 2011, accessed on September 16, 2019 .
  9. ↑ Olivia Heussler, independent photographer. In: YouTube.com. June 1, 2017, accessed September 16, 2019 .
personal data
SURNAME Heussler, Olivia
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swiss video and photo artist
DATE OF BIRTH 1957
PLACE OF BIRTH Zurich , Switzerland