Since the late 1980s, photographer Andri Pol, born in Bern in 1961, has helped shape the visual identity of magazines such as "Das Magazin," "ZEIT Magazin," "Stern," and "GEO" through his images and photo columns. His portraits feel both spontaneous and precisely composed; his reportage offers surprising perspectives on social, cultural, and political realities and identities. With his unmistakable style and ability to capture complex subjects with precision, Andri Pol is one of the most compelling voices in contemporary documentary photography.
The newly released book "Andri Pol – World" is part of a comprehensive overview of his versatile body of work. Pol captured these reportages, portraits, and observations of everyday life around the globe, with recurring geographical focuses including Switzerland, Japan, and China. The collection spans from his early work to current long-term and book projects. Approximately 700 images are accompanied by texts from historian and author Valentin Groebner.
Published in conjunction with a major exhibition at the Fotostiftung Schweiz in Winterthur, this volume is an invitation to marvel, smile, and discover—visually clever, close to the world, and full of character.
An event hosted by the publisher Scheidegger & Spiess and Never Stop Reading, followed by a book sale and drinks. Admission is free. The presentation will be held in German.
A very special guest at Never Stop Reading! As part of the "FeelAustria Days", which aim to bring the Austrian way of life to Zurich and its residents through around 30 events from September 16 to 20, renowned Austrian comic artist Nicolas Mahler will be joining us for his fast-paced reading performance, "My First 66 Books in 66 Minutes."
In this lightning-fast presentation, the artist, born in Vienna in 1969, dissects his entire published body of work to date—from his beginnings as a self-publisher of mini-comics in the 1990s to his current graphic novels such as "Komplett Kafka" or "Ach die dumme Literatur" for major publishing houses, which have been translated and released in 19 countries worldwide. The 66 minutes are packed with images, short comics, anecdotes, and both deep and shallow insights into the cultural scene.
Mahler, known for his minimalist drawing style, subtle humor, and adaptations of literary classics, also publishes in newspapers such as the "NZZ am Sonntag," "Die Zeit," and the "Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung," as well as in the popular satire magazine "Titanic." He has received numerous awards for his extensive work, including the 2010 Max and Moritz Prize for "Best German-Language Comic Artist" and the 2015 Prize of the Literature Houses. Since 2024, Nicolas Mahler has served as the artistic director of the Vienna School of Poetry.
An event by "FeelAustria Days" and Never Stop Reading. Tickets cost 15 francs, including a complimentary drink, and can be purchased via this Eventfrog link. The presentation will be held in German.
PLEASE NOTE: Seating is limited.
How can we talk about violence when it does not occur as a single event? When it repeats, shifts, clings to bodies, language, and memories, and becomes part of everyday life? The book "sticky violence(s) – a textual exploration of everyday dynamics" starts with these questions and seeks ways to grasp what is difficult to see and name.
Artan Islamaj’s publication moves between critical theory, essayistic and literary writing, photography, and correspondence. Personal and diasporic experiences intertwine with questions of language, memory, economy, belonging, and power. Structured along the Albanian alphabet, the book does not follow a linear narrative: terms, observations, memories, and fragments recur, overlap, and enter into a relationship with one another.
The book launch is intended less as a traditional reading and more as a collective conversation among those present, centered on the questions raised by the publication. A short text excerpt from "sticky violence(s)" will open the evening before the discourse — conducted in Albanian, German, and English — shifts into the room for exchange, further reflection, and being together. There will be time to start and continue conversations over drinks and the book sale.
Born in 1996, the author is co-director of the Institut Neue Schweiz (INES) and founder and co-editor of the literature and art zine "zwischentext." His work operates at the intersection of politics, language, and aesthetics, combining post-migrant and power-critical perspectives with literary and artistic practice. "sticky violence(s)" is his first long-form publication. He lives and works in Zurich.
An event by Artan Islamaj and zwischentext in collaboration with Never Stop Reading, followed by a book sale and drinks. Admission is free.
Japanese artist Kosuke consciously navigates the tension between homage, memory, and reinvention in his photographic practice. Heavily inspired by artists such as Man Ray, Mario Giacomelli, Daido Moriyama, and André Kertész, he draws upon iconic visual languages and classic photographic concepts without merely quoting them. Instead, he views the history of photography as a form of living material that can be continued, layered, and transformed.
At the heart of Kosuke’s work lies analog multiple exposure. These are not merely technical experiments, but dense, emotional visual spaces where different temporal layers, perspectives, and atmospheres flow into one another. Reality and memory, observation and imagination overlap to create dreamlike compositions that feel calm, poetic, and mysterious all at once. Despite the complex image structure, Kosuke’s works always retain the distinct materiality and quiet dignity of analog photography.
The works from the "WARNING" series featured in this exhibition unfold a peculiar world caught between melancholy, absurdity, and quiet tension. Recurring figures of idle cats move through urban scenes, fragments of landscapes, and near-cinematic situations. They appear as silent observers of a detached reality, lending the images an atmosphere that is both light and enigmatic.
The stark, almost alarmist title stands in deliberate contrast to the poetry of the works, opening up a space for ambivalence and interpretation. This is also why Kosuke’s photographs resist a single, definitive reading. They function less as documentary images and more as fragile spaces of memory where past, present, and imagination converge.
Born in Japan in 1986, Kosuke graduated from the Photography Department of Tokyo Polytechnic University in 2009. A year earlier, he won the Konica Minolta Premio award, which led to a solo exhibition at the Konica Minolta Plaza in Tokyo.
An event hosted by Christophe Guye Galerie and Never Stop Reading, followed by drinks. Admission is free.The exhibition is on view from October 1st to 24th.
Ida Spinnler was born in Italy in 1924. Her parents were "Randulins" – or "swallows" – Engadiners who emigrated to neighboring countries after the First World War. Ida and her siblings grew up in Piacenza, experiencing Mussolini's fascism and the Second World War. During the summer holidays, the family would return to their grandparents' house in Lavin, not far from the Swiss National Park.
At home, they spoke Romansh, while at school in Piacenza they spoke Italian, and later, in Chur, German. Ida completed several training programs, working as a medical assistant, in a laboratory, and as a translator. In 1952, she married the painter Rolf Spinnler. Their life as artists on the breadline was marked by frequent moves. Ida worked as a teacher to support the entire family, eventually raising three children on her own. She continued to take them "home" to the Engadin for their holidays.
In 1992, Ida returned to Lavin for good. After a brief stay in a retirement home, the centenarian now lives back in her grandparents' house. For the book "Randulina – Ida Spinnler, aus dem Engadin in die Welt," Ida Spinnler recounted her life to Jürg Wirth, a story that spans more than a century and a piece of Engadin history – colorful, vivid, and full of wit.
Wirth, born and raised in Aargau, is a qualified mechanical engineer who has lived in Lavin in the Lower Engadin for 25 years, where he works as a farmer with his family. He has been a freelance journalist for over 30 years, writing for publications such as the NZZ, "Die Zeit," and "Allegra." He is active in the Staziun Lavin association, which operates the cinema and bistro in the old train station. He received a Grisons work grant for his work on the "Randulina" manuscript.
At the book launch, former TV and radio presenter Hannes Hug will hold a conversation with the author.
A guest event hosted by Limmat Verlag in collaboration with Never Stop Reading. Followed by a book sale and drinks reception. Admission is free. The presentation will be held in German.