Seba Kurtis was born in Argentina in 1974. He studied journalism in Buenos Aires before leaving the country for Europe in the wake of the political and economic crisis of 2001. Several years spent as an illegal immigrant have informed much of his work, which explores the personal, social and cultural impact of irregular migration. Kurtis' work has been exhibited internationally, with solo shows in Europe and the USA, and his first book, Drowned (Here Press, 2011), was selected for the International Photobook Award at the International Photobook Festival, Le Bal, Paris, 2012. Kif (Here Press, 2013) is his second publication and was exhibited with solo shows at Withward gallery in London and in Manchester Photographic Gallery. Today Kurtis lives and works in Manchester.
"His photography is the sensitive extension of his robust nomad’s body with its magnanimous aura. It serves him as a performative means to talk about the world and to establish connections between world history and the individual story of his life in a sophisticated manner. As an artist Seba Kurtis is constantly on the move and is unconcerned by physical or aesthetic limits. He is among those who know that photography does not represent reality but that it is able to reveal its ruggedness, complexity and – above all – its inexhaustible poetry."
– Stefano Stoll, Director of the Festival IMAGES in Vevey
Education
Masters of Arts - Photography LCC (London College Communication) London, Great Britain
BA Photography Mid-Cheshire. Manchester, Great Britain
Selected solo exhibitions
2020
"Lockdown Project", Showroom Exhibition, Christophe Guye Gallery, Zurich, Switzerland
2019
"Paraiso" Lianzhou Museum of Photography, Lianzhou Photo Festival Quanzhou, China
2018
"Paraiso" PaCCS Fest Art & Film Festival 44AD Artspace, Bath, Great Britain
2017
"Discursive Documents” Huddersfield Art Gallery, Huddersfield, Great Britain
2016
"Lost in Translation" Institut Francais de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spanien
"Thicker than Water", QUAI1 gallery, Vevey, Switzerland
"Immigration Files" Christophe Guye Galerie, Zürich, Switzerland
2015
"J'habiterai mon nom" Centre Photographique, Normandie, France
„Immigration Files” Christophe Guye Galerie, Zürich, Switzerland
„Immigration Files” Pôle Image Haute-Normandie, France
2014
„KIF” Manchester Photographic, Manchester, Great Britain
2012
„Thicker Than Water” Format Contemporary Gallery, Mailand, Italien
„Thicker Than Water” Fotografia Europea, Reggio Emilia, Italien
2011
„Immigration Files” Lumen Gallery, Budapest, Ungarn
2010
„The Promised Land” Tricycle Gallery, London, Great Britain
„The Promised Land” Idea Generation Gallery London, Great Britain
2009
„Drowned and other stories” Host Gallery London, Great Britain
„700 miles” Kiosk Gallery, Manchester, Great Britain
Selected group exhibitions
2020
Abstractions, Christophe Guye Galerie, Zurich, Switzerland
2019
"Land_Scope" Christophe Guye Galerie, Zurich, Switzerland
"Kaleidoscope, Immigration and Modern Britain", Sommerset House, London, Great Britain
2015
„20/20vision – 20 curators/20 photographers” Christophe Guye Galerie, Zürich, Switzerland
2014
„Invisible migrations” Time magazine show, Alice Austen House, New York, United States
„The Grass Growns, Thicker Than Water” The Ground- floor, Basel, Switzerland
„Adriatic Stories” SiFest Festival, Savignano sul Rubicone, Italy
2013
„Unclassifed” Format Festival, POC project, Derby, Grande-Bretagne, France
2012
„Drowned” Kassel PhotoBook, Le BAL, Kassel, Germany
„Hijacked III” Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts, Perth, Australia
„Hijacked III” Format Festival, Quad Gallery. Derby, Great Britain
„Drowned” The History of now, F-Stop, Leipzig, Germany
„Unclassified” In Appropiation, Houston Center of Photography, Texas, United States
2011
„ShoeBox” Journées Photographiques, Bienne, Switzerland
„Immigration Files” ArtVerona VII, Verone, Italy
2010
„Yann Gross – Seba Kurtis” Gallery 22bis, Vevey, Switzerland
„Pieces of a Song” Host gallery, London, Great Britain
„UpdateUK” Krakow Photomonth, Krakau, Poland
„Global Photography” Galleria Contemporaneo, Venedig, Italy
„Fotosintesi” (Festival) Milan, Italy
„Salam” Photography Today, Progr, Bern, Switzerland
„Genesis: Art for Haity” Rag Factory, London, Great Britain
2009
„Closing In” Noorderlicht Photo Festival, Groningen, Netherlands
„Home for Good” New York photo Festival, New York, United States
“Global Photography” SiFest, Italy
„Lost in Transit” Impressions Gallery, Grande-Bretagne, France
