Elisabeth Rist

Place: Rheintal

Born: 1962

Biography:

Elisabeth Rist, also known as Pipilotti Rist, is a Swiss visual artist born on June 21, 1962, in Rheintal, Switzerland. She is best known for creating experimental video art and installation art. Her work is often described as surreal, intimate, and abstract, with a preoccupation with the female body.

Early Life and Education

Rist studied commercial art, illustration, and photography at the University of Applied Arts Vienna in Vienna from 1982 to 1986. She later studied video at the Basel School of Design, Switzerland. From 1988 through 1994, she was a member of the music band and performance group Les Reines Prochaines.

Artwork

Rist's work is known for its multi-sensory qualities, with overlapping projected imagery that is highly saturated with color, paired with sound components that are part of a larger environment with spaces for viewers to rest or lounge. Her artwork is often categorized as feminist art. Some of her notable works include:

• Ever Is Over All (1997), which shows a young woman walking along a city street, smashing the windows of parked cars with a large hammer in the shape of a tropical flower.
• Pickelporno (Pimple porno) (1992), a work about the female body and sexual excitation.
• Sip my Ocean (1996), an audio-video installation projected as a mirrored reflection on two adjoining walls, duplicating the video as sort of Rorschach inkblots.

Rist's work is held by many important art collections worldwide, including the Museum Kunsthaus Zürich and the Bavarian State Painting Collections.

Awards and Recognition

In 1997, Rist was awarded the Premio 2000 Prize at the Venice Biennial. Her work has been featured in various exhibitions, including the Ever Is Over All and the Sip my Ocean. For more information about Rist's work, visit her page on Museum Kunsthaus Zürich or her Wikipedia page at Bavarian State Painting Collections. Key aspects of Rist's work include her use of color, sound, and installation to create immersive experiences. Her artwork is often described as surreal, intimate, and abstract, with a preoccupation with the female body.