Otto Charles Bänninger was introduced to the sculpture by his father, a teacher who was artistically active in his spare time. From 1910 to 1913 he completed an apprenticeship with Franz Wanger in Zurich. In 1920/21 he attended the Académie de la Grande Chaumière in Paris and studied with Émile-Antoine Bourdelle, the master student Auguste Rodin. On the occasion of a trip to Italy in 1928, he dealt with the antiquity and the Renaissance.

In 1929-1951 he was married to Germaine Richier, who also came from Bourdelle's studio. Between 1932 and 1939 he commuted between Paris and Zurich, followed by his permanent establishment in the hometown. In contrast to his wife, who at times worked almost abstractly, O...