The cultural exchange between Switzerland and India is vibrant and dynamic across a wide breadth of art forms. Numerous Swiss artists and researchers have been active in India, including the architect Le Corbusier and the painter, sculptor and art historian Alice Boner. Carl Gustav Jung and Hermann Hesse were deeply inspired by Indian philosophy and their journeys in India, and so are contemporary Swiss artists coming to India. In recent years famous Swiss architects like Mario Botta and Herzog & De Meuron have designed buildings for well-known Indian institutions. Celebrated architect Peter Zumthor came to India in 2024 to find many young Indian architecture students to be very knowledgeable about his work. On the Indian side, producers like Yash Chopra have produced popular Bollywood films in the Alps, bringing the two countries closer together while making Switzerland a popular holiday destination for Indian travelers. The Embassy continues to engage itself broadly in the field of architecture, design, film promotion, languages and literature, contemporary arts and artistic exchanges, art in education, as well as innovation in traditional art initiatives. Our engagement in arts follows a dual approach: we are looking for worthwhile engagements and platforming of Swiss artists, and we are equally keen to find dynamic and knowledgeable local partners, who have the necessary context-knowledge. As we work on cultural projects, we make sure to promote gender equality, intercultural dialogues, mutual understanding, peace as well as artistic solidarity. In lockstep with ongoing innovations, our projects in the field of arts and culture are time and again inspired by innovation and digitalization.
Under the biannual initiative "SwitzerlandIndia 75: Success Stories to be continued" the cultural section has been able to come up with numerous additional projects that have brought Switzerland and India together.
Ever since the opening of the Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia liaison office in New Delhi in 2007 cultural relations between Switzerland and India have continued to grow and expand. Pro Helvetia focuses its efforts on contemporary literature, visual arts, dance and design. Moreover, an ever-increasing number Indian and Swiss artists had the opportunity to profit from the residency programs in Switzerland as well as in India offered by Pro Helvetia.
Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia
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