Led by Patrick Rychner, the ‘100 x Swissness’ Arts Project set out to photograph 100 members of the Swiss Club of Victoria—not just as faces, but as people with stories, histories, and quirks worth sharing. The aim was connection. Members meeting members. Old hands crossing paths with newer faces. Conversations starting where they might not have before.

That matters, especially in a club where many long-time members are aging and many newer ones are second-generation Swiss who don’t yet know the people who built this place. A portrait, it turns out,
is a good excuse to stop, look, and ask a question.

Each participant brought one object to their photo session—something Swiss, something personal, or something that simply says ‘this is me’. 

These small details do a lot of the talking. They spark stories, memories, and the kind of exchanges that keep a community alive.

Shot in a consistent studio style, the portraits form a growing body of work—part exhibition, part art, part archive.

Together, they capture a snapshot of Swiss life in Australia, right now.
And this is only the beginning.

Exhibition Dates:

14/15 February 11am to 4pm

21/22 February 11am to 4pm

The Siwss Club of Victoria, Lvl 2, 89 Flinders Lane