Présentation

 » At the beginning stands the search of a young woman for her own space in this world. The black-and-white photographs powerfully convey her critical and searching gaze—on herself as a young woman, on her personality, and on her first home, both inside and out. It becomes clear that from the very beginning of her artistic journey in the mid-1980s, Sonja Maria Schobinger has been a photographer. In the darkroom, she first explored the possibilities of analog photography through silver gelatin prints with curiosity and experimentation. Later in her artistic search, she delved into the world of digital photography, only to return again and again to traditional artistic techniques, such as drawing—though practiced using the tools of a computer screen. The camera is a significant technical instrument to tentatively explore the world and the self. Yet it is not the technical aspect of photography that interests her (today). Her quest is for the substance beyond matter; she illuminates fleeting moments with great nuance and captures their transience in her images. Sonja Maria Schobinger’s long-term (research) projects have evolved over decades into thematic groups: early self-portraits in Coming of Age, Anthemis Nobilis, Still Lifes, Flowers, and Trees.
In the long-term project Anthemis Nobilis, we see a female body—the artist’s own—surrounded and protected by plants.The female body is more sensed than seen—its contours wrapped in various plants: mistletoe, blackberries, strawberries, violets, and delicate branches from different trees. The artist searches in her compositions for the essence of each plant and its harmonious counterpart. The result is a series of fragile image-layerings that challenge the viewer’s eye without distorting perspective. These layers generate a certain visual tension. At the same time, by combining historical botanical photography with analog images from Coming of Ageusing digital techniques, the work expresses different layers of time: past and present, the capturing of a moment and the documentation of change over time. The plants, with their unique and specific qualities, provide a protective covering for the vulnerable body—offering both protection and healing. At the same time, they embed the human organism into the forces of nature and the cycle of life. In the moment a petal is backlit, or the shimmering canopy of a tree becomes translucent, light—the immaterial—becomes visible. And here we again encounter the photographer behind the lens, who sensitively and precisely illuminates the magic of the moment and explores the mysteries of being. » Text excerpt written by Dr. Astrid Bextermöller, art historian, Basel

Parcours

Sonja Maria Schobinger, born 1970, lives and works in Basel.
After completing her education as a graphic designer, Schobinger studied
photography at the Zurich University of the Arts and later worked as a cura-
tor and photography specialist for historical image archives. The artist is represented by Fabian und Claude Walter Galerie, Zürich.

Solo Exhibitions:

2025
Galerie Fabian & Claude Walter
2021
Galerie Carzaniga, Basel
2019
Galerie Carzaniga, Basel
2018
Krebsforschung Schweiz, Bern
2017
Galerie 94, Baden
Galerie Isabelle Gabrijel, Berlin
2016
Galerie Monika Wertheimer, Oberwil

Art Fairs:

Art Salon 2025, Photo Basel 2025.
Art Salon 2024, Photo Basel 2024.
IPFO 2023, Photo Basel 2023.
Art Basel 2022.
Art Basel 2021.
Art Fair Taichung 2019, Taiwan. WOP Art 2019.
Kunst 18, Photo Basel 2018

Collections:
Art Collection of the University Hospital Basel, maternity ward. Art Collection of the City of Zurich.
Hoffmann La Roche Art Collection, Basel.
VFO Verein für Originalgrafik, Zürich.
Art Collection of the University Hospital Basel, Dept. Surgery.
Art Collection of the University Hospital Basel,
maternity ward.
Hoffmann La Roche Art Collection, Basel.