Swiss Institute

“Swiss Institute is managed by a governing board, which is referred to as the Board of Trustees. A Trustee shall be a member during his/her trusteeship. The number of voting trustees constituting the entire board shall be at least five and no more than fifteen. The person or persons signing the certificate of incorporation as the incorporator or incorporators shall be the first member or members of the Swiss Institute unless they have resigned or unless membership should be terminated. Thereafter, the qualifications and eligibility for membership and the manner of admission into membership shall be prescribed by resolution of the Board of Trustees and/or by any similarly prescribed rules and regulations, which the Board of Trustees may promulgate.”

“Trustees shall be elected at the annual meeting of members by a plurality of the votes cast by the members. The number of trustees may be increased or decreased by action of the trustees, provided that any action of the trustees to the effect such increase or decrease shall require the vote of a majority of the entire board. The trustees may also elect or appoint a Chairman of the Board, a Vice Chairman of the Board, a Secretary and one or more Assistant Secretaries, a Treasurer and one or more Assistant Treasurers, and such other offices and agents as they may determine. Each membership shall entitle the holder thereof to one vote. In the election of trustees, a plurality of the votes cast shall elect. Any other action shall be authorized by a majority of the votes cast, except where the not-for-profit corporation law prescribes a different proportion of votes; provided that the said majority of the affirmative votes cast shall be at least equal to a quorum.”

“Governance decisions of the Swiss Institute are reserved to the members of the Board of Trustees.”

“The Federal Form 990 is prepared by the external accountant, and a final draft is emailed to the Swiss Institutes's bookkeeper for a preliminary review. Upon completion, the bookkeeper then forwards an electronic copy to the Director, Treasurer and the rest of the board members for review and approval. The bookkeeper notifies the external accountant that the Form 990 is approved and ready to be filed.”

“Prior to any party's election to the Board of Trustees or as an office, such party, and annually thereafter, each member of the Board of Trustees and each officer shall disclose in writing any interest, as defined below, in any corporation or other organization, which provides goods or services to Swiss Institute for a fee or other compensation. A copy of each disclosure statement shall be available to any trustee on request. If at any time during his or her term of service, a trustee or office has any interest, he or she shall promptly disclose the material facts of that interest in writing to the board. When any matter in which a trustee or officer has an interest comes before the board or any committee thereof for decision or approval, that interest shall be immediately disclosed to the board or the committee by that trustee or officer.A trustee or officer shall be deemed to have an "interest" in a matter if that trustee or officer or a related party has a significant economic interest in a decision on the matter by the board or any committee. As to any trustee or officer, a "related party" shall mean any relative thereof or an entity in which any of the foregoing persons in a shareholder, director, officer or the equivalent. No trustees shall vote on any matter in which such trustee has an interest.”

“The Board of Trustees determines the compensation of the directors. Comparable compensation levels for similar positions in similar industries are explored by experts in the industry, and discussed at the board meeting to determine total compensation packages for the directors. All compensation deliberations and decisions are documented in the board minutes. The directors are provided with an employment contract that outlines the compensation package.”

“The Form 990 is available for public inspection as required under Section 6104 of the Internal Revenue Service Code as it is posted on Guidestar.org and other similar websites. In addition, Forms 990 and 1023, as well as the financial statements, articles of incporporation and bylaws, are available upon written request of the Organization at 117 Second Ave, 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10003 or by calling (212) 925-2035.”

“OTHER PROGRAM SERVICES 4: Hans Scharer Exhibition - Swiss Institute is delighted to present the first US solo exhibition of Hans Schrer (b. 1927, Berne, d. 1997, St-Niklausen). The landmark exhibition pairs two of the artists most significant bodies of work, the Madonnas and the Erotic Watercolors, recently seen in an extensive exhibition at Aargauer Kunsthaus in Aarau, Switzerland this summer.From the late 1960s to the mid 1980s, Schrer painted over 100 paintings entitled Madonna, each featuring the head and body of an isolated figure, often with a framing silhouette around the head and shoulders suggesting long hair, a veil or a cloak. Painted with thick layers of oil paint, and incorporating objects such as stones, hair, shells and keys, the Madonnas are both menacing and mesmerizing typified by unnerving gazes and prominent, tooth-filled mouths that grimace and gape.During the same period Schrer painted 150 Erotic Watercolors, which, by contrast, are joyfully carnivalesque scenes in which bodies lustfully cavort and play. In settings that suggest a circus or a garden of earthly delights, sensual, statuesque women gaily take pleasure in their own company and from diminutive male figures. Taken together the two series are complex explorations of faith, spirituality, vitality and eros.An artist, musician, composer and writer, Schrer was an influential figure in the Swiss art scene of the 1970s and 1980s. In recent years his work has received increased international attention, most prominently in the 55th Venice Biennale, The Encyclopedic Palace, curated by Massimiliano Gioni, when Cindy Sherman included a suite of Madonnas in her installation, Almost 20 years after his death, Swiss Institute is thrilled to exhibit these singular bodies of work for the first time to audiences outside of Europe.”

“The oversight process of the Organization's audit of its financial statements and selection of an outside accountant has not changed from the process followed in the prior year.”