Foreign Agent

Foreign Agent is a contemporary art gallery based in Lausanne, Switzerland. We specialize in emerging and mid-career contemporary talent from Africa and the Diaspora - and beyond, exploring key contemporary narratives, marginalized identities and new critical perspectives on history. At the intersection between art and design, Foreign Agent is less a white cube than a uniquely curated salon showcasing collectible design by some of the leading designers from Africa and the Diaspora. Foreign Agent is also the Big Brother of Little Agent, a concept store with carefully selected must-have pieces which will elevate your global style. 

 

Foreign Agent organises 6 shows per year at the gallery and presents at international art fairs such as 1-54 London, New York and Marrakech, Design Miami Basel, PAD Paris, AKAA,  Abu Dhabi Art, Unseen and Photo Basel amongst others. Foreign Agent has been featured on Artnet, Artsy, Larry's List, Monocle, The Guardian, The Art Newspaper, Le Quotidien de l'Art, Beaux-Arts Magazine, L'Oeil de la Photographie, ArtAfrica, Contemporary & America Latina, Nataal, Diptyk, Elle Décoration, Elle, Ideat, WeltKunst, Le Temps and Tages Anzeiger.

 

Foreign Agent was founded by Olivier Chow, a Swiss-Chinese citizen of the world, educated in Geneva, London and the field, a political scientist and art historian with a PhD from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London. In a previous life, he worked for UNESCO in Paris and for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Kabul, Goma, Tel Aviv, Port-au-Prince and Geneva just to mention a few. He has published for Tate papers, Sotheby’s, the International Review of the Red Cross, HEAD Geneva and other peer-reviewed publications.