Ernst A. Heiniger (1903–1993) belonged to the avant-garde of the Swiss “New Photography” (Neue Fotografie) movement in the 1930s. A photo retoucher by trade, he taught himself the art of photography, because he was no longer content with simply touching up other people’s pictures. He quickly developed a keen sense for contemporary and modern aesthetics and was one of the first photographers to be admitted to the Swiss Werkbund (SWB). After this initial spark to his career, Heiniger constantly took on new challenges and continued to do pioneering work. In 1936 he created Puszta Pferde, one of the first modern photobooks in Switzerland. He worked with well-known graphic artists such as Heiri Steiner, Herbert Matter and Josef Müller-Brockmann and created innovative designs by combining photography and graphics, an entirely novel concept at the time.

Even though Ernst A. Heiniger’s visual worlds were admired by a broad public in his day, his name is still largely absent from the canon of Swiss photographic history. The Fotostiftung was able to return his archive from the United States to Switzerland in 2014 and is now presenting his multifaceted work in the first comprehensive retrospective since his death.

In the 1950s, Ernst A. Heiniger travelled the world as a documentary filmmaker for Walt Disney – two of his short films were awarded an Oscar. He later created Switzerland’s first 360° film for Expo 64 in Lausanne.

The two documentaries Switzerland (USA, 1955) and Ama Girls (USA, 1958) can be seen on the monitor in the foyer of the Fotozentrum.

The SRF documentary film Der Boss, Walt Disney und die vergessenen Oscars  (USA, 2019) offers a deeper insight into the life and work of filmmaker and photographer Ernst A. Heiniger

Exhibition leaflet