artnet News Interviews 105-Year-Old Hans Erni

105-Year-Old Artist Gives Cutest Interview Ever

Born in Lucerne in 1909, Swiss artist Hans Erni’s multi-dimensional art career spans seven decades! Between 1927 and 1928, Erni attended the School of Arts and Crafts before traveling to Europe meeting the likes of Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque. You can notice influence of Picasso and Braque’s Cubist experiments throughout Erni’s oeuvre. Returning to Switzerland in 1937, Erni co-founded a group of Switzerland-based abstract artists that advocated Max Bill’s concrete art theories. Erni is most known for his postage stamp illustrations, participation on the Olympic Committee, and his lithographs for the Swiss Red Cross. The Hans Erni Foundation was established in 1977. In 1979 the Hans Erni Foundation opened on the grounds of the Swiss Museum of Transport in Lucerne. The museum houses more than 300 Erni paintings, drawings, graphics, sculptures, and ceramics. Erni celebrated his 105th birthday this year.

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