Omanut (Schweiz)

Omanut (Schweiz) is a Swiss cultural association based in Zurich dedicated to the promotion and mediation of Jewish art and culture. The name derives from the Hebrew word for "art" or "craft". The association was founded in 1941, during the Second World War, as a Swiss regional branch of an earlier Omanut society established in Zagreb in 1932 by Marko Rothmüller, David Spitzer and Hinko Gottlieb. Rothmüller, a singer who later moved to Zurich, helped establish the Swiss association and served as its first president. Omanut organizes and supports concerts, readings, exhibitions, film screenings and lectures, covering a broad range of fields including visual art, film, literature, music and theatre. Since 1995 the board has awarded a sponsorship prize, typically every two years, to a promising artist working in the field of Jewish culture. The association is run by a board of experts who are responsible for the varied programme and who invite members to events several times a month. As an independent association, Omanut maintains various cooperations with other cultural organizations in the Zurich area, including the City of Zurich, the former Literaturpodium and the Filmpodium of Zurich, the Kunsthaus and Schauspielhaus of Zurich, the Israelitische Cultusgemeinde Zürich and the Jewish Liberal community Or Chadasch in Zurich. Until the end of 2026 Omanut also runs its own cultural venue, BEIJZ. The association has around 800 members and addresses both a Jewish and a non-Jewish public interested in Jewish cultural creation. It is financed through annual membership fees as well as donations and legacies; board members work on an honorary basis. Members benefit from reduced admission prices for concerts, readings, exhibitions and film screenings. Omanut communicates with its audience through postal and email newsletters with news and event tips. Its programme has included events such as a guided tour with artist Dominique Bondy on her works in the exhibition "Listed Lives" at the Musée Visionnaire, a lecture on the influence of Judaism on Freud and Jesus with Amy-Jill Levine and Jay Geller, and a reading on Elsa Morante. The association is documented in Katarina Holländer's 2001 publication "Die Frage nach der jüdischen Kunst. 60 Jahre Omanut, Verein zur Förderung jüdischer Kunst in der Schweiz".

The history of Omanut begins with an earlier association founded in Zagreb in 1932 by Marko Rothmüller, David Spitzer and Hinko Gottlieb. Their initial goal was to help build the so-called "national Jewish school" in music. After a year, Omanut developed further; in Hebrew the word means "art" or "craft". When Rothmüller, a singer, moved to Zurich to join the city theatre, he sought to establish a similar association in a city with a strong tradition of Jewish life. The Swiss regional association was founded in 1941, during the Second World War, and Rothmüller served as its first president in the early years. The association set out to promote Jewish art and culture in Switzerland across a wide range of fields: visual art, film, literature, music and theatre. Over the decades it has organized and supported concerts, readings, exhibitions, film screenings and lectures. Since 1995 the board has awarded a sponsorship prize, usually every two years, to a promising artist in the field of Jewish culture. The association works on a project-by-project basis with partners such as the City of Zurich, the former Literaturpodium and the Filmpodium of Zurich, the Kunsthaus and Schauspielhaus of Zurich, the Israelitische Cultusgemeinde Zürich and the Jewish Liberal community Or Chadasch in Zurich. Until the end of 2026 Omanut also runs its own cultural venue, BEIJZ. The association has around 800 members and is financed through membership fees, donations and legacies; board members work on an honorary basis. In 2001 Katarina Holländer published a history of the association's first 60 years, "Die Frage nach der jüdischen Kunst. 60 Jahre Omanut, Verein zur Förderung jüdischer Kunst in der Schweiz".

• 2026

  Omanut continues to run its own cultural venue BEIJZ until the end of 2026.

• 2001

  Katarina Holländer publishes a history of the association's first 60 years.

• 1995

  Omanut board begins awarding a sponsorship prize, typically every two years, to a promising artist in Jewish culture.

• 1941

  Swiss regional association Omanut founded in Zurich during World War II; Marko Rothmüller serves as first president.

• 1932

  Omanut founded in Zagreb by Marko Rothmüller, David Spitzer and Hinko Gottlieb.

Independent non-profit cultural association promoting Jewish art and culture in Switzerland for both Jewish and non-Jewish audiences.

• Concerts

• Readings

• Exhibitions

• Film screenings

• Lectures

• Sponsorship prize

1. 1Omanut official websiteomanut.ch
2. 2Omanut — Über unsomanut.ch
3. 3Omanut (Schweiz) — Wikidatawikidata.org
4. 4Omanut (Schweiz) — Wikipedia (Alemannic)als.wikipedia.org