Jon Merz, 1981

Jon Merz is a Swiss Postwar & Contemporary artist, born in 1981 in Neuchâtel.

Merz, who lives in Berlin and Basel, trained at the Bern University of the Arts and the Hamburg Academy of Fine Arts. He has been exhibiting his work in Switzerland and abroad over ten years.

He can almost be seen as a painter with an easel and a summer hat in the outdoors, almost as if he were a 19th-century Impressionist. However, the paintings depicted in his immediate surroundings resemble Expressionism and occasionally Symbolism. The works appear classically styled, almost in the manner of Old Masters, showing a strong art historical influence. Much of it feels somewhat familiar, yet at the same time, it is extremely surprising and refreshing, especially when one is aware of the artist’s earlier work, such as his monochrome-painted wooden cubes from the early 2010s or his constructions made from plywood boards, steel rods, and other materials from hardware stores. These early pieces, which fluctuate between paintings and early objects, evoke movements like Post-Minimalism and the Conceptual Art of the 1970s, as well as Hard Edge or Color Field painting. They also recall German artists like Joseph Beuy’s students Imi Knoebel and Blinky Palermo. Like them, Merz emerges as a new representative of constructivist, non-objective art – a kind of Constructivism 3.0.

His paintings are characterized by a masterful interplay of light, color, and texture, which invites a nuanced examination of both the physical and metaphysical realms, prompting viewers to embark on a journey of introspection. Merz often marries representational elements with abstract forms, blurring the boundaries between realism and abstraction. Furthermore, Merz’s technique demonstrates an acute awareness of composition and rhythm, integrating dynamic brushwork with meticulous detail.

The artist was nominated for the Swiss Art Awards 2024 and has benefited from several residencies.

Merz's work has been exhibited in numerous galleries and art shows, and institutions, such as the Bern Cantonal Bank and the Musée d'Art et d'Histoire de Neuchâtel, have begun acquiring his paintings.