Hugo Loetscher - Performances

Performances

Hugo Loetscher's works were often based on his traveling experiences; he has been called the most cosmopolitan Swiss writer. His experiences are reflected in reports such as Zehn Jahre Fidel Castro (1969) and narrative works such as Wunderwelt. Eine brasilianische Begegnung (1979) and Herbst in der Grossen Orange. Loetscher's most famous works are Der Immune (1975) and Die Papiere des Immunen (1986), in which he experimented with several literary genres. This variety of genres also reflects itself in other works: fables in Die Fliege und die Suppe (1989), short stories in Der Buckel (2002), columns in Der Waschküchenschlüssel und andere Helvetica (1983), poetry in Es war einmal die Welt (2004). In 2003, he published Lesen statt klettern, a collection of essays on Swiss literature, in which he questioned the traditional image of Switzerland as an Alpine nation. His literary estate is archived in the Swiss Literary Archives in Bern.

Loetscher also had strong interest in visual arts, particularly painting and photography. He was a close friend of the Swiss painter Varlin(Willy Guggenheim). Varlin painted Loetscher and in 1969, Loetscher edited the first book about Varlin's life and work. As President of the Foundation of Swiss Photography, Loetscher was co-editor of the first history of Swiss photography Photographie in Der Schweiz Von 1840 Bis Heute (1974).

Loetscher was a member of the Swiss Writers´ Association (Schweizerischer Schriftstellerverband), whose president he was from 1986 to 1989. He is also corresponding member of the Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung in Darmstadt.