b. 1973, Zurich, Switzerland/Lives and works New York City, New York

Urs Fischer uses a range of mediums to express the transience of art and, concomitantly, the human condition. Fischer has described his regard for the boredom that comes with everyday activities, and in his work the prominence of chairs and shadows “often fused together into one object” is an indication of the artist’s interest in equilibrium in time. Alternately, the artist has produced completely ephemeral works of art, including wax sculptures of three nude women that he made for his exhibition at Sadie Coles HQ in London. Entitled What If the Phone Rings (2003), the pieces were lit like candles during the opening and allowed to melt away over the course of the exhibition. Fischer studied photography at the Schule für Gestaltung, Zurich. Solo exhibitions include Cockatoo Island, Sydney (2007); Paris 1919 Museum Boijmans van Beuningen, Rotterdam (2006); Urs Fischer: Mary Poppins Blaffer Gallery, The Art Museum of the University of Houston (2006); Galerie Eva Presenhuber, Zurich (2006); Camden Arts Centre, London (2005); Fig, Nut & Pear Gavin Brown’s Enterprise, New York (2005); Jet Set Lady Fondazione Nicola Trussardi, Milan (2005); Kir Royale Kunsthaus Zürich (2004); Elton John? Sadie Coles HQ, London (2004); What should an Owl do with a Fork Santa Monica Museum of Art (2002); Mystique Mistake The Modern Institute, Glasgow (2002); The Membrane - Why I Don’t Mind Bad-mooded People Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam (2000); and Without a Fist - Like a Bird Institute of Contemporary Art, London (2000). Group shows include Biennale de Lyon (2007); The Third Mind Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2007); Dream & Trauma Kunsthalle Wein, Vienna (2007); 52nd Venice Biennale (2007); Big Bang, Centre Pompidou, Paris (2006); Whitney Biennial 2006, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York (2006); Defamation of Character P.S.1, New York (2006); Where Are We Going? Selections from the Francois Pinault Collection Palazzo Grassi, Venice (2006); Universal Experience: Art, Life, and the Tourist’s Eye, Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, toured to Hayward Gallery, London, and Museo d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea di Trento e Rovereto, Roverto, Italy (2005-06); Monument to Now Deste Foundation, Athens (2004); Silver Convention Galerie Giti Nourbakhsch, Berlin (2003); Dreams and Conflicts: The Dictatorship of the Viewer 50th Venice Biennale (2003); Durchzug Draft Kuntshalle Zürich (2003); and Squatters: Lowland Lullaby, Swiss Institute New York (2002).