Rome in Los Angeles: Urs Fischer at work and play

We've been attracted to Swiss artist Urs Fischer's work since we saw his first major American show at the New Museum in the Bowery in New York City in 2009. This summer, at his "YES" exhibition at the Jeffrey Deitch Gallery in Los Angeles, we saw more of Fischer—and instantly saw his connection to Rome.

Above is his Big Foot - obvious to anyone who has spent any amount of time in Rome, from the often-photographed piece of the Colossus (Constantine) in the Capitoline Museums. 

Next up - hardly needs a reference. Fischer's version is titled pietà (2014) - yes, with lower case "p." One version (then of 2) sold at Sotheby's in 2015 for an estimated $200,000-300,000.

Of course, the sculpture below could have been inspired by a column anywhere, but we like thinking it's Roman.

Titled the column, it's also from 2014, and I see the photo as 3 columns: one the vigilant guard, another the gallery's supporting column.

In the "let's connect it to Rome" game, we came up with 3 more - though Fischer and Deitch likely would disagree:

I thought I recognized the Rome Lupa (the she-wolf of Rome's founding story), but I wasn't sure about the little man poking an arm up her butt. The title is cat + blockhead (2014). Oh, well, good try.

And this? Maybe Gabriele d'Annunzio with his aviator glasses and a nod to Rome's nasoni. The title? Marsupiale (it IS in Italian) and supposedly (per the Gagosian - and they should know): the bust is a portrait of Fabrizio Moretti, a highly influential Italian art dealer who specializes in Old Master paintings. I've been hanging out with Bill too long, it appears.

Below - a wider view of the show. Many of the sculptures were from a 2013 MOCA Exhibition in New York City where Fischer had over 300 tons of clay delivered and then enlisted up to 250 participants a day to mold to their heart's desire. He and his studio colleagues later cast some of these into bronze (and sold them for a pretty penny).

Fischer's ties to Rome are strong. He seems to eschew the usual fellowships. Here are 3 of his projects.

In 2013 Fischer staged a self-titled solo exhibition at Gagosian Rome. There, he debuted his famous Problem Paintings and Horse/Bed. In 2017, he installed in Sant'Andrea de Scaphis, a deconsecrated 9th-century church in Trastevere, Bliss (2017)—a massive, white-painted clay portrait of Katy Perry that visitors were invited to touch, sculpt, scrape, and break apart. Opened Sept. 2017 for 2 months. And last year Fischer returned for a massive dual-presentation titled After Nature at Gagosian Rome. And he installed a monumental sculpture titled Dance (2025) directly in the Villa Medici's historic Renaissance gardens. It opened in September 2025 for 2 months. How we missed those last 2, I don't know.

Dianne