Swiss Institute

What Swiss Institute does

Swiss Institute is an independent non-profit contemporary art institution founded in 1986 and headquartered at 38 St Marks Pl in New York City's East Village. Its mission is to promote forward-thinking, experimental art making through a portfolio of activities that includes rotating exhibitions, public programs (performances, lectures, workshops, screenings, book launches), artist residencies, and education and community programming for families, teens, young adults, adults, schools, and universities. The institution distinguishes itself through a Swiss-American cultural-exchange mandate, most visibly operationalized via the Pro Helvetia-funded residency that hosts Swiss artists in New York and through co-commissioned projects with European partners such as LUMA Foundation and Kunsthalle Bern.

The core "products" are cultural programs rather than technology goods: exhibitions (e.g., Spora, SoiL Thornton, Jiajia Zhang, Regift), residencies (Pro Helvetia, Clarice O. Tavares, SAHA), education tracks, and supporting services such as a retail shop (books, prints/editions, apparel) and venue rentals. There is no proprietary technology platform, software product, or AI component; the operating surface is a standard content website (swissinstitute.net), an Instagram presence, an email newsletter, and an e-commerce shop. Distribution is anchored in the physical East Village venue and extended through partnerships (Danspace Project, MoMA) and selective international exposure (e.g., Art Genève 2026 Special Projects).

The revenue model is a non-profit contributed-income stack: institutional and foundation grants (Pro Helvetia, The Andy Warhol Foundation, LUMA Foundation, Henry Moore Foundation, Teiger Foundation), public funding (New York State Council on the Arts, NYC Department of Cultural Affairs), corporate benefactors (UBS, Stella Artois, Swiss Re, Vitra, SWISS), individual giving (including a benefit gala and TimeForArt), earned revenue from the shop, venue rentals and events, and a Friends of Swiss Institute membership program. Admission to exhibitions and programs is free.

Name

Swiss Institute

Legal name

Swiss Institute

Website

https://swissinstitute.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Swiss Institute is an independent non-profit contemporary art organization in New York's East Village that presents exhibitions, public programs, artist residencies, and education, focused on Swiss-American cultural exchange and funded by foundations, public agencies, and donors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Donations and Institutional Support: As an independent non-profit, Swiss Institute relies on donations, institutional partnerships, foundation support, and individual giving to fund operations and programming.
2. Shop Revenue: The institution operates a retail shop selling books, prints, and apparel related to exhibitions and artists. Products include artist monographs priced at $25-$85, and other art-related merchandise.
3. Rentals and Events: The facility is available for private rentals and events, generating revenue through venue hire.
4. Membership Programs: Friends of Swiss Institute membership program provides exclusive access to editions and special events in exchange for annual contributions.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Swiss Institute is an independent non-profit contemporary art institution that presents free exhibitions, public programs (performances, lectures, screenings, book launches), artist residencies (Pro Helvetia, Clarice O. Tavares, SAHA), and multi-audience education programming at its 38 St Marks Pl venue in New York's East Village. It supplements programming with a retail shop (books, prints, apparel), a venue rentals service, and a Friends membership program, while sustaining operations through donations, foundation support, and corporate sponsorships.

Product overview

Swiss Institute is an independent non-profit contemporary art institution offering a unified portfolio of cultural programs. The core offerings include rotating exhibitions of contemporary art, public programs (performances, lectures, workshops, book launches), artist residency opportunities, and education/community engagement. Supplementary offerings include a retail shop selling books, prints/editions, and apparel, as well as venue rental and philanthropy services. The institution is not a technology platform but a cultural organization providing public access to contemporary art.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Contemporary Art Exhibitions Rotating exhibitions of contemporary art by emerging and established artists, presented free of charge at the Swiss Institute venue in New York. Current and past shows include Spora, SoiL Thornton: Metabolizing eviction try, Jiajia Zhang: Domestic News, and Regift.
• Public Programs (Performances, Lectures, Workshops, Screenings, Book Launches) Public programming that complements exhibitions, including conversations, performances, lectures, workshops, screenings, and book launches. Free and open to the public.
• Pro Helvetia Residency Artist-in-residence program funded by Pro Helvetia (Swiss Arts Council) hosting two Swiss residents at Swiss Institute per year, promoting artistic exchange between Switzerland and New York.
• Clarice O. Tavares Residency Artist-in-residence program at Swiss Institute supporting artistic exchange and professional development in New York.
• SAHA Residency Artist-in-residence program at Swiss Institute supporting artistic exchange in New York.
• Education & Community Programs Structured cultural and art education programming for Families, Teens & Young Adults, Adults, Schools & Universities, and Community groups, offering multigenerational engagement with contemporary art.
• Shop - Books and Artist Monographs Published books and monographs by artists featured at Swiss Institute, priced at $25–$85, available for purchase online.
• Shop - Prints and Editions Art prints and limited editions created in conjunction with Swiss Institute exhibitions and artists, available for purchase online.
• Shop - Apparel Branded apparel merchandise featuring Swiss Institute branding, available for purchase online.
• Venue Rentals and Private Events Rental of Swiss Institute venue spaces at 38 St Marks Pl, New York, for events and private functions.
• Friends of Swiss Institute Membership Annual membership program providing exclusive access to editions and special events in exchange for annual contributions.

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• LUMA FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026LUMA Foundation is a co-commissioner of Saodat Ismailova's exhibition Amanat alongside Swiss Institute and Kunsthalle Bern. The exhibition will travel in expanded form to LUMA Arles following its presentation at SI.
• Kunsthalle BerncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Kunsthalle Bern is a co-commissioner of Saodat Ismailova's exhibition Amanat. Following the SI presentation, the exhibition will conclude at Kunsthalle Bern in an expanded form.
• Danspace ProjectmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Swiss Institute collaborated with Danspace Project to present Tiran Willemse's Untitled (Nostalgia: Act 3), extending performance programming to a partner venue in New York.
• Consulate General of Switzerland in New YorkminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvided special thanks for support of Tiran Willemse's Dweller exhibition.
• Art GenèveminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerArt fair featuring ESPRESSOBAR in their Special Projects section at invitation of the fair.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• The Kitchen: NYC non-profit space presenting experimental contemporary art, performance, and music. Strong overlap with Swiss Institute's programming model around performance, residencies, and artist-driven work.
• White Columns: NYC's oldest alternative non-profit art space supporting emerging and under-recognized artists. Operates at similar scale and shares the experimental, mission-driven programming ethos.
• SculptureCenter: Long Island City-based non-profit presenting experimental contemporary sculpture and installations. Comparable in scale, mission, and audience for emerging artist programming.
• Artists Space: NYC non-profit founded in 1972 supporting contemporary art through exhibitions, commissions, and publications. Closely aligned with Swiss Institute in mission, scale, and curatorial approach.
• Kunsthalle Bern: Swiss non-profit exhibition space with similar contemporary art mission. Active co-commissioning partner with Swiss Institute (Amanat exhibition), illustrating close programmatic alignment across geographies.
• New Museum: New York-based non-profit contemporary art museum with a focus on emerging artists and experimental practice. Direct peer in mission, audience, and programming model, though larger in scale and located downtown.
• Drawing Center: NYC non-profit museum dedicated to drawing as a contemporary art practice. Similar size, programming structure, and audience overlap with Swiss Institute's experimental exhibition model.
• Hessel Museum of Art (CCS Bard): Non-profit contemporary art museum at Bard College focused on experimental and emerging art. Similar curatorial ethos, though located outside NYC proper and tied to an academic institution.

Broad incumbents

• MoMA PS1: Affiliated with MoMA, MoMA PS1 is a Long Island City non-profit dedicated to contemporary art. Comparable in mission but operates at significantly larger scale and resource base.

Regional players

• Swissnex in New York: Swiss government's international outreach node in NYC. Shares Swiss-American cultural exchange mission with Swiss Institute, though focused on science, innovation, and education rather than contemporary art.

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/swissinstitute
• Xx.com/swiss_institute
• Facebookfacebook.com/SwissInstituteNY
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/swiss-institute-contemporary-art-ny

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Swiss Institute