Marguerite Saegesser was born in Bern, Switzerland in 1922 and was educated there. During her career she has worked in numerous cities including Rome, Paris, London, Boston, and New York.
Saegesser's internationally recognized abstract paintings are represented by Paula Kirkeby.
Her artistic development: "Originally, I was supposed to become a violinist. That would have made my mother very happy. I studied the violin for about 15 years. Later, though, I had the feeling I could accomplish more with sculpture than with music . . . I had been exposed to art all my life."
Where are her sculptures now? Many are at the bottom of Lake Geneva. When Saegesser got married and was preparing to move away from Bern with her husband, she decided to sink her sculptures in the lake rather than struggle with transporting them to a new location. "It also was a way to start a new part in my life—to move from sculpture into painting. . . . When (the painter) Sam Francis heard what I'd done, he said, 'Oh, how could you do that? That is terrible!'"
What Francis later wrote about the sinking: It was "an act of courage, the first step toward these paintings."
Her muse: "I don't work from something I see, but rather I work from—am inspired by—things happening in the world. Something happens in the world, and it makes me think, and soon I have an idea that grows within me."
Her description of her work: "My paintings are much closer to music than to words."
On being an artist in Palo Alto: The art scene "is dead," Saegesser says sadly, adding that she was sad to hear of the recent closure of the Lucy Berman Gallery, where she used to exhibit.
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Marguerite Saegesser Jubilant Thoughts Hour of Magic, 1992 Acrylic on Canvas, 77.5 x 285 cm |
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Marguerite Saegesser Shattered Dream, 1993 Acrylic on Canvas, 76x 112 in. |
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Marguerite Saegesser Birch Trees Sway Acrylic on Paper, 32 x 48 in. |
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Marguerite Saegesser Sunny Morning, 1997 Linoleum Monoprint |
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Marguerite Saegesser Vibrant Sight, 1997 Linoleum Monoprint |
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Marguerite Saegesser Futile Unison, 1991 Acrylic on Linen, 113 x 88 cm |
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Marguerite Saegesser Sun's Fireballs, 2000 Acrylic on Canvas, 49 x 49 in. |
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Marguerite Saegesser It Sings (Series), 2001 Linoleum monoprint, 20 x 60 in. |
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Marguerite Saegesser Silence, Cooked Like Gold, 2001 Acrylic on Canvas, 38 x 58 in. |
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Marguerite Saegesser Unknown Title, c.1998 Acrylic on Canvas |
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Marguerite Saegesser Thunder and Gold—Why Do We Cry?, 1994 Acrylic on Canvas, 67 x 50 in. |
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Marguerite Saegesser Bright and Manifold, 1998 Linoleum monoprint, E.V. of 12, 60 x 40 in. |
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Marguerite Saegesser Monotype #27, 1981 Color monotype, 76.2 x 57.2 cm Anderson Graphic Arts Collection, gift of the Harry W. and Mary Margaret Anderson Charitable Foundation |
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Marguerite Saegesser Series of Unique Linoleum Etchings, 1995 Linoleum Etchings |
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Links:
Smith Andersen Editions
Ferocious Ghosts, Marguerite Saegesser — Memories and Dreams at the de Saisset Museum.