Alexis Saile — The Artist Behind Our Labels

Alexis Saile, born in 1972, is a Zurich artist whose work resists easy categorization. He studied graphic design at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts – Design & Art, before establishing himself as a freelance artist in Zurich. That design training still shows in his work today: a clear hand, paired with raw, unfiltered expressive force.

Saile moves between drawing, painting, sculpture, music and performance — seemingly effortlessly, and always searching. His themes are existential in nature, yet never heavy-handed: he swings between euphoria and despair, always with a wink and a good deal of humor.

What sets Saile apart is the way he combines text and image. Alongside drawing, painting and sculpture, he likes to play with words and handwriting — forceful, yet deeply sensitive. That mix of spontaneity and tenderness makes his work instantly recognizable.

Early exhibition texts already described his art as impulsive, drawn straight from everyday life — "cheap, fast, aggressive art" was the title of one of his Zurich exhibitions, held in the Wartesaal near Wollishofen train station.

Saile has been showing his work in Zurich and beyond for decades — including as part of Message Salon, and in 2024 with the large-scale outdoor installation Für was? at Tableau Zürich, in public space.

Five books of his work have been published by Simonett & Baer to date: Doppelgänger, Kind of Hockney, Der Wunderbaum, Katze als Vulkan, and most recently (2025) Super Star, a limited first edition of 250 copies.

That unmistakable hand is also what shapes our labels. In Alexis Saile, we have an artist at our side who understands art not as decoration, but as an independent, living form of expression — exactly what we want our labels to carry.