Flurina Badel (*1983) is a multilingual writer, performer and activist.
She initially trained as a journalist before earning a Master of Fine Arts at the Institute Art Gender Nature at HGK FHNW in Basel and later studying at the Institute for Language Arts at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna.
In 2019 she published her first volume of poetry «tinnitus tropic», which won the Swiss Literature Award in 2020. In 2024 she published her first novel «Tschiera», which won the Literature Award of the Canton of the Grisons 2025. The German translation by Ruth Gantert «Nebelflüchtige» was widely reviewed and reached the SRF-Bestenliste. Her other awards include the OpenNet Prize of the Solothurn Literature Festival (2018), and the Premi Term Bel (2022). She was awarded a literary fellowship as at the Fondation Jan Michalski (2023), at Alice Boner Foundation in Varanasi (2024) and at Wintertuin in Nijmegen (2024) and a Lettere alla Vaposchiavo (2026).
Flurina Badel performed her writings at several festivals as for example at the Serendipity Festival Goa, Wintertuin Festival, European Poetry Festival London, Festival Textures Fribourg, Dis da Litteratura Rumantscha etc. She often creates and performs in collaboration with both musicians and other artists as with musician Fred Frith for the Opera «Truth is A Four Letter Word» commissioned by Sons d’hiver Festival in Paris; with Frisian rapper Alexander Moto for Explore the North Festival in Leeuwarden; or with the Calabrun Trio for the Performance «be calm» (2023-25); and she is the co-author of the play «Monokali Polypunk» commissioned and realized by Theater Chur, 2025.
Flurina Badel is committed to the promotion of (multilingual) literature beyond her own writing. Since 2016 she has directed the Romansh literature program «Impuls» at Radiotelevisiun Svizra Rumantscha. Since 2018 she is the co-director of the biennial literary festival «LitteraturA Nairs» with a focus on literary translation. In addition, she moderates author talks and cultural events such as the Swiss Literature Awards ceremony (since 2023) and the «Peter Bichsel: In memoriam» at Solothurner Literaturtage 2025.
Flurina Badel designed the very first modular degree course «Lavuratori Scriver Litterar» for aspiring Romansh authors on behalf of Lia Rumantscha. She is a mentor for multilingual writing as at Double Literatur 25/26 by Migros Kulturprozent and Bolo Klub 24/25. As a lecturer for creative writing and literary performance, she has led several workshops and seminars such as «Traversadas Litteraras» with Translation House Looren, «Multilingualism and linguistic autobiography in poetry» at the Banaras Hindu University, the masterclass «Multilingualism as tool for literary writing» for the ArtEZ University of the Arts Arnheim and «Personal Literary Multilingualism» for Future Language Innovation Curaçao and for the Makersday of Wintertuin Festival.
Since 2014, she has worked as a visual artist in collaboration with Jérémie Sarbach. The duo Badel/Sarbach received the Manor Art Prize in 2019. Their work combines installation, sculpture, video, sound, and performance, and explores themes such as the relationship between nature and culture in the Anthropocene and the overlap between the analogue and digital worlds.
As an activist, Flurina Badel has been a strong political advocate on the local and national level for the livability of small villages in Switzerland. Currently, she is establishing the Fundaziun Dachasa, a foundation for affordable housing on behalf of the organization Anna Florin.
Bibliography (selection):
«Nebelflüchtige», novel, translated by Ruth Gantert, Rotpunktverlag, Zurich 2026
«DisgustExtract» essay Romansh/Dutch, translated by Ursina Guldemond-Netzer, Wintertuin, 2025
«Olor de saüc» poesia, Catalan: Dolors Udina i Antoni Clapés, Cafè Central, Barcelona, 2025
«Tschiera» roman, Chasa Editura Rumantscha, Cuira, 2024
«tropischer tinnitus» poesia, translated by Ruth Gantert, Edition Howeg, Turich, 2022
«üert fomantà» poesia, translated by Denise Mützenberg, Édition Les Troglodytes, 2021
«tinnitus tropic» poesia, editionmevinapuorger, 2019
Texts in anthologies:
«Amur. Poesias 1648 – 2025» antologia, Chasa Editura Rumantscha, Cuira, 2025
«Alpine Poesie der Gegenwart» antologia, Edition Raetia, Bozen, 2023
«Aruè» antologia, traducziun: Denise Mützenberg, Editions d’en bas, Lausanne, 2022
«El tiempo en que vivimos» antologia, traducziun: Jessica Zuan, Editores Naranjo, Columbia, 2022
«La bocca d’luf es s-chüra» antologia, Chasa Editura Rumantscha, Cuira, 2019
«Aruè. Poésie romanche» antologia, traducziun: Denise Mützenberg, Editions Samizdat, 2015
«S14 SvizzeraSchweizSuisseSvizra» prosa, Gabriele Capelli Editore, 2014
«Moderne Poesie in der Schweiz» antologia, cun autotraducziuns, Limmat-Verlag, Zürich, 2013
«Neue Texte aus der Schweiz» antologia, cun autotraducziuns, Solothurner Literaturtage, 2008
«Amurellas» antologia, Chasa Paterna 125, Uniun dals Grischs, 2006
Further texts have been published in exhibitions as in Dial-A-Poem Switzerland
at MAMCO Genève, in magazines and anthologies such as «Föhnrausch, orte 232», the yearbooks «Litteratura» of the Uniun per Litteratura Rumantscha, the yearbook «Viceversa – Wildwege» (2022), in the multilingual art magazine «Revue l’Ouroboros» (No. 5 and 6, Lyon, 22/23), in the journal for literature «Ostragehege» (No. 97, Germany, 2021) or for the project «10’000 words» (Diaphanes, Berlin, 2019). Since 2006 short prose by Flurina Badel can be heard in the RTR program «Impuls». In 2025 the audiobook of the novel «Tschiera» read by the author was published.
©Juliette Chrétien