Hans Bach
Born in 1946.
Died in 2019.
Swiss expressive figuration · wood sculpture, drawing, printmaking and illustration.
Hans Bach (Wetzikon, 2 May 1946 – Stammheim, 28 May 2019) was a Swiss sculptor, draughtsman and etcher. From 1963 to 1968 he attended the preparatory course and metal class at the Zurich School of Applied Arts and also trained as a goldsmith. He worked independently as a draughtsman and etcher from 1971 and began making sculpture in 1980.
The human figure became central to his sculptural work. Wood and its expressive possibilities played a major role, particularly in his female figures. Working in three dimensions did not displace his graphic practice: drawings, etchings and illustrations remained complementary fields.
From 1986 to 2006 he taught at the Zurich School of Design and Art.
Exhibitions document his presence in Swiss artistic life. Kunsthalle Winterthur records a joint presentation of Hans Bach and Ulrich Elsener in 1987. In 1992–1993 he participated in the ZEF group exhibition at Helmhaus Zürich, documented in the city archives.
From 27 June to 5 October 2014, “Hans Bach zu Gast im Atelier Hermann Haller” placed his work in dialogue with Hermann Haller’s sculpture in Zurich. The city recorded 5,700 visitors to the studio in 2014, a record for the venue. The exhibition positioned Bach’s sculpture within a cross-generational encounter between figurative approaches to the human body.
Two monographs published by Scheidegger & Spiess provide access to his oeuvre: “Hans Bach. Skulpturen 1992–2001”, issued in 2001, and “Hans Bach – Skulpturen, Druckgrafik, Zeichnungen 2002–2012”, published under his editorship in 2013. The second, 176-page volume brings together sculpture, prints and drawings, enabling the different aspects of his practice to be considered together.
Auction records include groups of his etchings and aquatints. Galerie Moenius AG’s sale on 26 June 2020 contained two lots of signed and dated graphic works. These offerings contribute to the documentation of his printmaking but do not provide direct price comparisons for his wood sculptures.