Mara Züst
FH Visual Communication – ZHdK
MA History of Art and Photography – History of Modern Era – UZH
Born in 1976, Mara Züst lives with her family in Zurich. She holds a diploma in Design (Visual Communication FH/Theorie der Gestaltung und Kunst, ZHdK), a Masters in Art History with a minor in Modern History from the University of Zurich and a CAS Arts and International Cooperation (ZHdK). She works as an artist, mediator, author and researcher and is the person in charge of the estate of Andreas Züst which runs the Bibliothek Andreas Züst, Oberegg.
"The central element of my work relates to developing original concepts for artistic and cultural endevours. These are mostly in the form of texts, books, exhibitions, literary events and workshops or a combination of them. To realize these concepts into the diverse forms they take, I work closely with professionals from various fields such as visual communication, photography, computer programming as well as the arts, and crafts like printings and wood work. Thematically, my interests are diverse and range from an aesthetic exploration of mundane phenomenons to artistic researches on book design and printing techniques, as well as the work of individual artists or designers."
Prizes and Nominations:
2019: Kolkata—City of Print is awarded the Walter Tiemann Main Prize.
2018: Grant by Pro Helvetia for the project "Mini-Zine-Library"
2016: "Doris Stauffer. Eine Monografie" awarded Shortlist Wettbewerb "Die schönsten deutschen Bücher 2016"
2014: Research-scholarship by Pro Helvetia for Kolkata (Indien)
2011: Photobook "Himmel" awarded "Die schönsten Schweizer Bücher 2011" (The Most Beautiful Swiss Books 2011)
2011: Photobook "Himmel" nominated for the International Photobook Award 2012
2010: Scenography from the exhibtion "Andreas bis Züst – Eine Bibliothek auf Wanderschaft" shortlisted for the Swiss Design Award 2009
2009: "Memorizer – Der Sammler Andreas Züst" awarded "Die schönsten Schweizer Bücher 2009" (The Most Beautiful Swiss Books 2009)