SwissArtGallery · Documented identity

Alighiero Boetti

Alighiero Boetti (1940–1994) became known in Turin in the early 1960s, initially associated with Arte Povera. In 1969, he distanced himself from the movement and developed a more personal approach, drawing on techniques and media as varied as printing, performance, sculpture, embroidery, drawing, construction and mathematics. The name Alighiero e Boetti, which he adopted by adding “e”—“and”—echoes his interest in duality and multiplicity, while also questioning the idea of a unified artist.

Chance, order and the question of authorship run through his work, as do the tensions between order and disorder, indeterminacy and logic. He is also interested in systems of classification and the knowledge they produce and perpetuate. These concerns take concrete form in works made using contrasting processes: Mimetico (1966) is a painting on stretched camouflage canvas, while Colonna (1967) consists of a stack of hundreds of paper doilies. For Viaggi Postali (1969–70), he sends letters bearing fictitious addresses to artists and figures he admires; once returned, they are sent out again along imaginary routes. In a later work, he retraces the lines of a grid on sheets of paper and covers large sheets with long ballpoint-pen marks, exploring the idea of a futile and time-consuming activity.

His first stay in Kabul, in 1971, is followed by a return a few months later; there he establishes the One Hotel with Gholam Dastaghir, a waiter and local entrepreneur. Variations of the Mappe may introduce a pink sea or Sufi poems in the margins. A Mappa from 1989, embroidered on nettle cloth, measures 122.5 × 217.8 cm. Niente da vedere niente da nascondere (1969), made of iron and glass, measures 300 × 400 × 4 cm.

This profile brings together identity references for Alighiero Boetti and paintings, drawings and works on paper documented in auction catalogues.

12 references are documented at Germann. Each record links to its source; the amounts are not a general valuation of the artist’s work.

Works recorded at auction

Germann

Untitled

Mixed media on paper

Original catalogue wording

Senza titolo
Mischtechnik auf Papier.

Date to be documented

Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed

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Germann

I vedenti, Correre come un razzo per le strade del mondo..., Mitte 1980er Jahre

Collage and mixed media on paper

Original catalogue wording

I vedenti, Correre come un razzo per le strade del mondo..., Mitte 1980er Jahre
Collage und Mischtechnik auf Papier.

Date to be documented

Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed

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Germann

I vedenti, Saltando di palo in frasca per le vie del mondo..., Mitte 1980er Jahre

Collage and mixed media on paper

Original catalogue wording

I vedenti, Saltando di palo in frasca per le vie del mondo..., Mitte 1980er Jahre
Collage und Mischtechnik auf Papier.

Date to be documented

Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed

View the lot at the auction house ↗

Germann

I vedenti, Bombe, ordigni e/o altro a Roma nella primavera, 1986

Collage and mixed media on paper

Original catalogue wording

I vedenti, Bombe, ordigni e/o altro a Roma nella primavera, 1986
Collage und Mischtechnik auf Papier.

Date to be documented

Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed

View the lot at the auction house ↗

Germann

I vedenti, Buttare un segno nell'infinito, 1980er Jahre

Mixed media on paper

Original catalogue wording

I vedenti, Buttare un segno nell'infinito, 1980er Jahre
Mischtechnik auf Papier.

Date to be documented

Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed

View the lot at the auction house ↗

Germann

Untitled

Bleistift, Farbstift, Gouache und Collage auf Papier.

Original catalogue wording

Senza titolo
Bleistift, Farbstift, Gouache und Collage auf Papier.

Date to be documented

Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed

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Germann

Estate 1970, 1972/1973

Collage und Bleistift auf Papier.

Date to be documented

Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed

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Germann

Untitled

Bleistift, Farbstift, Gouache und Collage auf Papier.

Original catalogue wording

Senza titolo
Bleistift, Farbstift, Gouache und Collage auf Papier.

Date to be documented

Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed

View the lot at the auction house ↗

Germann

Untitled

Bleistift, Gouache, Stempel und Collage auf Papier.

Original catalogue wording

Senza titolo
Bleistift, Gouache, Stempel und Collage auf Papier.

Date to be documented

Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed

View the lot at the auction house ↗

Germann

Untitled, 1981

Mischtechnik und Collage auf Papier auf Leinwand aufgezogen.

Original catalogue wording

Senza titolo, 1981
Mischtechnik und Collage auf Papier auf Leinwand aufgezogen.

Date to be documented

Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed

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Germann

Ohne Titel (Bugs Bunny), 1992

Bleistift, Gouache, Spritztechnik, Collage und Stempel auf Papier.

Date to be documented

Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed

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Germann

Ohne Titel (Bugs Bunny), 1992

Bleistift, Gouache, Spritztechnik, Collage und Stempel auf Papier.

Date to be documented

Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed

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Sources and references

• Reference record
• ARTIC · Reference link only; institutional text and images are not reproduced.
• LoC · Reference link only; institutional text and images are not reproduced.
• MoMA · CC0
• Documentary source
• Documentary source

SwissArtGallery documentary note based on the cited sources. Titles, media and qualifications are provided in the profile language; the original catalogue wording remains available in each record.
Documentation updated : 2026-10-19