Switzerland's Art & Culture -- Mountains of Creativity

The Castle of Chillon on the shores of Lake Geneva was immortalized by Lord Byron  (wikipedia)

SWITZERLAND – When most travelers consider the great centers of art in Europe, they usually think of Florence, Rome, Venice, Paris or Madrid among others.

Chateau d'Oex is a popular place for ballooning  (wikipedia)

If you mention Switzerland, the images that first come to mind are majestic peaks rising from the earth, villages nestled upon the shores of deep glacial lakes or panoramic tableaux that fade into infinity.

But these are only a prologue to a country that ignites the flames of artistic expression which are frequently unknown to many visitors. Switzerland is a place where the omnipotent hand of nature has created a breathtaking palette for the brushstrokes of man.

To understand the art and culture of Switzerland, you must first look at its history. Centuries before Christ, people settled among the hills of what is now Bellinzona; a gateway between northern and southern Europe near the border of Italy. Switzerland has been a crossroads ever since.

Roman ruins on the Rhine River at Augusta Raurica near Basel are always a surprise  (wikipedia)

Julius Caesar came to Geneva in 58 BC. The Romans later migrated north near present day Basel to establish a colony known as Augusta Raurica in 44 BC. The thriving commercial center of 20,000 people was the oldest Roman settlement on the Rhine.

Zurich's Fraumunster has windows by Chagall (wikipedia)

By 15 BC the Romans had developed a customs post at a place called “Turicum.” Today we know it as Zurich.

With the conquering of the Alps, Switzerland’s cultural landscape was altered forever during the latter part of the 18^th century with the onset of tourism.

By the middle of the 20^th century, Switzerland was home to some of the finest private art collections in the world; the Buhrle Collection in Zurich, the Oskar Reinhart Foundation in Winterthur and Thyssen-Boremisza in Lugano; all world class exhibitions featuring works by Monet, Renoir, Gauguin and Van Gogh to name a few.

Am Romerholz in Winterthur is home to the private art collection of Oskar Reinhart  (wikipedia)

When the city of Basel founded the oldest university in Switzerland in 1460, it also etched an indelible impression upon the cultural canvas of the country.

Amerbach portrait by Hans Holbein  (wikipedia)

In 1661, the Amerbach Collection of Basel was acquired for the university, establishing the first public art museum in the world. Today, the Holbein collection combined with the works of native son, 19^th century painter Arnold Bocklin, are among the highlights that contribute to Basel’s Fine Arts Museum as one of the best in the world.

The canton of Ticino has been called “a fragment of the Mediterranean on the fringes of the north” featuring frescoes by Bernardino Luini in the Church of St. Mary of the Angels in Lugano. Luini is often compared to his Renaissance contemporary  Leonardo da Vinci.

Lugano is also home to internationally acclaimed architect Mario Botta who only has two designs in the United States, one in San Francisco and the other in Charlotte.

Mario Botta building in Basel  (wikipedia)

At the Swiss Alpine Museum in Bern, Ferdinand Hodler paints man’s challenges of conquering nature by attempting to ascend to the summit of the Matterhorn.

In the early part of the 20^th century, Expressionist painter Ernst Ludwig Kirchner also took  inspiration from the mountains. 

While living in several locations around Davos, the region provided a temporary refuge in Kirchner’s deeply troubled life. Today the Kirchner Museum has received accolades as an excellent example of modern Swiss architecture.

Painting by Giovanni Segantini in St Moritz  (wikipedia)

Just over the mountains tucked in the corner of a hillside in St. Moritz, sits a museum that honors Giovanni Segantini whose mountain motifs are characterized by short, thick brushstrokes that magically blend into poetic rural scenes.

The Olympic Museum in Lausanne rises from wide-stepped, landscaped terraces overlooking the Lake of Geneva to capture the concept of “Olympism” which combines the development of man’s physical and moral senses with his cultural and artistic qualities. Outside the Olympic flame burns as an eternal symbol of the games. It is a celebration of the games of antiquity that is both archive and learning center.

Exterior of the Olympic Museum in Lausanne  (myswitzerland.com -- Christophe Moratale)

At the Fraumunster in Zurich, Marc Chagall’s stained glass windows attract visitors from all over the world. Just across the river, the Kronenhalle is one of the city’s liveliest and most sophisticated restaurants where diners are surrounded by original works of many of the world’s greatest artists.

As art critic Judd Tully says, “Switzerland is really a very rich and diverse palette, if you will, of what you can see without having to know that much about it, really.”

TIP: In Switzerland a Swiss Travel Pass (railpass) offers FREE admission to more than 450 museums.

Alexander Calame drew his inspiration from the magnificence of the Swiss Alps  (wikipedia)

With a vibrant artistic heritage, Switzerland looks brightly toward the future where art tells a story  that is a chronology of man’s evolving creativity. It tells of men’s lives and the world in which they lived, yesterday and today with an eye always toward tomorrow.

In Switzerland art is a visual diary of the centuries and a footnote to history.