Paul Talman, Untitled, 1988, Silkscreen on cloth, 172 × 153 cm, Edition of 40 plus IV AP
Courtesy of Archivio Conz, Berlin
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- Paul Talman (1932 Zurich, Switzerland–1987 Ueberstorf, Switzerland) was a Swiss painter, sculptor, and designer linked to kinetic art. Trained as a lithographer in Bern, he soon became interested in geometric-abstract painting, approaching the circle of artists around the concrete art magazine Spirale, edited by Marcel Wyss, Dieter Roth, and Eugen Gromringer. Beginning in the 1960s, Talman began producing a series of kinetic objects called Kugelbilder, sculptural compositions of two-tone balls, embedded and repurposed in different color and material combinations, designed to be rotated by the viewer in all directions. In 1961 he exhibited at the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, then attended Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the U.S. and later worked with KNOLL International, New York. Returning to Europe, he approached the Groupe de Recherche d’Art Visuel (GRAV) in Paris, collaborating with Daniel Spoerri and Jean Tinguely, and participating documenta IV in 1968. In 1973, he relocated to Ueberstorf Castle in the canton of Fribourg, continuing to work primarily on abstract black-and-white paintings and series of geometric silkscreens. Talman’s work as a product designer is reflected in the production of calendars, clock radios, and especially lamps based on his Kugelbilder, which are now regarded as exceptional design objects.