Switzerland FOR
Art Lovers
Switzerland’s artistic heritage is second-to-none, with a succession of world-class galleries, museums and renowned art fairs. National treasures include Alberto Giacometti, Ferdinand Hodler, Jean Tinguely and Paul Klee, but there are countless collections of Masters from around the world too.
t Visitors admiring works by Fernand Leger in the Kunstmuseum
All Eyes on Basel
Basel is first and foremost a city of art and culture. There are more museums here than anywhere in Switzerland; it’s the home of Art Basel (Europe’s premier art show) and the term Art Brut (Raw Art) was coined here. Start at the Kunstmuseum, the world’s oldest public fine art gallery, then pay homage to local hero and kinetic sculptor Jean Tinguely at Museum Tinguely on the banks of the Rhine. For 21st-century art, finish up at the Kunsthalle.
Hats Off to Paul Klee
Call it Expressionism, Cubism or Surrealism, but one thing’s clear: Paul Klee is one of Switzerland’s greatest artists. He called Bern home and it is there that you’ll find the Zentrum Paul Klee, a wave-shaped museum designed by architect Renzo Piano, dedicated to his life’s work. The vast collection showcases the versatility of his art, balancing masterpieces alongside lesser-known pieces of art.
Birthplace of Dadaism
Zürich’s most famous art moment came during World War I when a counter-culture movement emerged focusing on anti-war politics and anti- bourgeois ethic. It was called Dadaism and its ground zero today is Cabaret Voltaire, one of Switzerland’s most vibrant avant garde art spaces and jazz bars.
insider tip
Comic Collection
Basel’s Cartoon Museum (www.cartoonmuseum.ch) celebrates narrative drawing, with one of Europe’s most kaleidoscopic collections of caricature, comics and graphic novels. In 2005, the quirky museum was extended and restyled by Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron.
Switzerland for Art Lovers
Best art museums
Kunstmuseum Bern
Opened in 1879, this is one of Switzerland’s oldest art museums.
Kunsthaus Zürich
A modern art home to international stars and homegrown heroes such as Giacometti and Hodler.
Lowenbrau Complex, Zürich
Once a brewery, now an unmissable cultural centre.
Musee d’Art et d’Histoire, Geneva
An impressive gallery in the west of the country.