New York, December 7, 2023 – Switzerland Tourism proudly hosted Le Salon Suisse, a unique and enriching event during Miami Art Week. The program which took place December 6 at the Esmé Miami Beach Hotel, a former 1920s artist colony turned hotel, included curated talks highlighting Swiss destinations’: Basel, Geneva, Vaud, St Gallen, and Zurich by some of the most influential leaders in the art & culture space.

Panel Discussions with Esteemed Guests included:

• Preserving Craftsmanship in Contemporary Fashion
  Time: 12:00 – 1:00 pm
  Moderator: Emma Cormack, Associate Curator, Bard Graduate Center
  Panelists: Florence Tétier, Creative Director Jean-Paul Gaultier; Aurora James, Founder and Creative Director Brother Vellies
• Building for Art Museums
  Time: 1:45 – 2:45 pm
  Moderator: Paul Clemence, architecture writer and photographer
  Panelists: Emanuel Christ, Founding Partner, Christ & Gantenbein Architects, Andy Klemmer, President and Founder Paratus Group, Donna De Salvo, Senior Adjunct Curator, Special Projects, Dia Art Foundation
• Inclusion and Representation in Museum Programming
  Time: 3:30 – 4:30 pm
  Moderator: Camille Okhio, Senior Design writer at Elle Decor 
  Panelists: Ini Archibong; Industrial Designer, Larry Ossei-Mensah, Art Curator and Co-founder ARTNOIR; Pascal Hufschmid, Director International Museum of the Red Cross and Red Crescent
• The Importance of Niche Art Events for Emerging Artists
  Time: 5:30 – 6:30 pm
  Moderator: Kendra Jayne Patrick, Art Gallerist
  Panelists: Serge Attukwei, Artist; Monster Chetwynd, Artist

Photo Exhibitions

Featuring works by Swiss Art Director Photographer Namsa Leuba “Black to the Future” and US/Brazilian Photographer Paul Clemence “Shapes, Rhytmn, Abstraction”

• “Black to the Future” In this series commissioned by Switzerland Tourism for Le Salon Suisse in Miami, Namsa Leuba celebrates African-Americans freed from all forms of servitude, showcasing their strength and resilience in a society where freedom and equality prevail. Through images generated by artificial intelligence, adopting an Afro-Futuristic style, she blurs the boundaries of space and time, reinventing stereotypes of the American western. This approach takes the cultural reappropriation to its climax and symbolizes the overturning of ancestral domination. Exploring this new paradigm with the use of artificial intelligence, Namsa Leuba delves into a realm where the imagination dictates its own existence, coming to life through the image. Through a circular perspective, her creations reinterpret, in a contemporary manner, the history of the emancipation of a people in the light of American archetypes.
• “Shapes, Rhytmn, Abstraction” Through his abstract eyes, photographer Paul Clemence takes us on a poetic journey through Swiss museums in Geneva, Lausanne, Basel, Zurich and St. Gallen. With a focus on textures, patterns, shapes and light, the photo essay features a diverse mix of projects by architects such as Herzog & de Meuron, Mario Botta, Christ & Gantenbeim, Shigeru Ban among others.

Complimentary Amenities

• Meals and refreshments, on the scenic rooftop of Esme Hotel, a former artists’ colony.
• Spa treatments by the rooftop pool.

Le Salon Suisse is a cultural initiative by Switzerland Tourism North America sponsored by LAUFEN and Swiss International Air lines.

The pictures can be downloaded under the following links:

• Le Salon Suisse
• Exhibition Paul Clemence
• Exhibition Namsa Leuba

About Switzerland Tourism
Switzerland Tourism is the official National Tourist Office of Switzerland with representations in 33 offices in 22 markets around the world with the goal of promoting Switzerland as a travel, vacation, and convention destination. In North America, Switzerland Tourism operates offices in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Toronto.

About LAUFEN
Since 1892 the Swiss manufacturer LAUFEN enables bathroom
experiences for body and soul. The company offers today holistic bathroom culture with a focus on sustainability, excellent design, innovation and technological leadership coming from a long tradition of high-quality craftsmanship. With its vision of the bathroom as a living environment, everything at LAUFEN, from the ceramic fixtures and faucets to the bathtubs, furniture, mirrors, accessories, and even the installation systems and hidden features, is innovative, heart-warming and radiates a unique aesthetic appeal.
LAUFEN’s head office is located in Laufen, a city very near Basel. The company owns six production sites in central Europe.

About Swiss International Air lines
Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) is Switzerland’s largest air carrier. With one of Europe’s most advanced and carbon-efficient aircraft fleets, SWISS is a premium airline that provides direct flights from Zurich and Geneva to keep Switzerland connected with Europe and the world, with nonstop service to Switzerland from including Boston, Chicago, Miami, Los Angeles, New York (JFK & Newark), San Francisco, Washington DC (as of March 28), Montreal and Toronto (as of May 10). As The Airline of Switzerland, SWISS embodies its home country’s traditional values and is dedicated to delivering the highest product and service quality. The company has also committed to the ambitious climate goals of halving its 2019 net carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 and making its operations entirely carbon-neutral by 2050, particularly by promoting the use of sustainable aviation fuels. SWISS is part of the Lufthansa Group and is also a member of Star Alliance, the world’s biggest airline network.

Contact for media enquiries:
Switzerland Tourism
Divine Bonga
Head of Media and Communications North America
Phone: +1 646 760 0835
e-mail: divine.bonga@switzerland.com