Internationally, Thomas Ott (b. 10.6.1966, Zurich) is German-speaking Switzerland’s most famous comics author. His scratchboard works are a distinct mixture of black-heavy, film-oriented visual language and dark, nightmarish stories. The masterful linework and opulent vividness of the images he scratches with a craft knife form an oppressive contrast with the stripped-down wordlessness of his stories.

Thomas Ott’s first works appeared in the comic magazine ‘Strapazin’ while he was still studying graphic design at the Zurich School of Design. After graduating, he worked as a freelance comics artist and illustrator. In 1989, the publishing house Edition Moderne released his scratchboard book ‘Tales of Error’. It was the first in a series of acclaimed comic albums, in which he combines grotesque cryptic tragedies with the drastically exaggerated depiction typical of pulp films and books.

Alongside numerous comic albums, he also produced cinematic works, such as the animation ‘Robert Creep’, which was created in collaboration with Claude Luyet and won the Audience Award at the Solothurn Film Festival in 1993. After an eight-year stay in Paris, Thomas Ott began a second degree, studying film at the Zurich University of the Arts, which he completed in 2002. He then made further short films and animations. His most recent works include a diary of a journey along the USA’s popular Route 66 for the renowned ‘Louis Vuitton Travel Book Series’ and the subtle surreal short story ‘The Forest’ for the ‘25 Images’ collection published by Éditions Martin de Halleux.

Cartoonmuseum Basel is the first museum to hold a retrospective on this artist, who has been awarded the Swiss Federal Scholarship for Applied Arts several times and, for example, became the first comics artist to receive the Swiss Grand Prix of Design, in 2017. The comprehensive exhibition presents originals from all his comic albums, arrangements featuring groups of works, animations, live-action films, objects and sources of inspiration.

Press conference: Thursday, 20.03.2025, 11am
Opening: Friday, 21.03.2025, 6.30pm
Curator: Anette Gehrig