Elisabeth Wild, Collage Artist Who Gained Late Recognition, Dies at 98

Elisabeth Wild, the collage artist originally from Austria, passed away at the age of 98. Her artistic endeavors gained recognition later in her life, particularly alongside her daughter, painter Vivian Suter. Curator Adam Szymczyk was instrumental in their promotion, organizing a joint exhibition at Kunsthalle Basel in 2014 and featuring them in Documenta 14 in 2017. Wild showcased her work at Toronto's Power Plant in 2017 and held a solo exhibition at Carbon 12 in Dubai in 2019. Born in Vienna in 1922 to a Jewish family, her parents fled to Argentina as the Nazis rose, stopping in Venice for her to experience its beauty. Eventually, she settled in Basel, running an antique shop with her husband and daughter. After retiring, she relocated to Guatemala, living on a former coffee plantation in Panajachel. Despite health challenges, Wild continued to create art daily. She and Suter appeared in Rosalind Nashashibi's 2016 film, Vivian's Garden. Following her death, Wild's design will be featured in a London tube map by Art on the Underground in spring 2020, and MUMOK Vienna is set to present a career retrospective in 2021.