Exploring Swiss Art: Museums And Galleries You Should Bookmark

If you are visiting Switzerland, we are pretty sure that you would be hesitant to spend too much time inside due to the breathtaking beauty of the country's dazzling scenery and snow-capped Alps. The many private art collections and museums in Switzerland, on the other hand, provide a dizzying assortment of interior attractions for art lovers. Switzerland is a cultural haven, home to world-class museums showcasing everything from ancient and modern paintings to breathtaking pictures and sculptures. Here’s where you can go if you are interested in visiting art museums in Switzerland!

Beyeler Foundation 

Architect Renzo Piano adhered to the exacting curatorial guidelines laid down by the museum's founders when he created this Riehen, near Basel, facility. The museum is bathed in natural light and surrounded by lush vegetation; its many display halls branch out from the main atrium. The Fondation Beyeler site gives off an air of tranquillity thanks to its park setting and the sculptures that dot the grassy area. Inside, the spacious and light chambers of the piano house are a changing selection of 250 modern and contemporary masterpieces from the 400-strong Hildy and Ernst Beyeler collection. There is also a designated space for temporary exhibits, making it a must-visit art museum in Switzerland!

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L' Elysée Museum

The remarkable collection of over 100,000 original pictures is housed at the Musée de l'Elysée, a historic 18th-century mansion rising from the verdant manicured gardens overlooking Lake Geneva. Exhibitions of early photography as well as works by 20th-century greats including Cartier-Bresson, Irving Penn, and Ella Maillart helped establish this museum as one of the first in Europe to focus only on photography. Another strength has always been social history, as seen through the perspectives of individuals such as Sebastião Salgado, Christine Spengler, and Mario Giacomelli. The museum has boldly curated shows of difficult contemporary work, often paired with other creative disciplines, as it has risen in prominence and expanded its emphasis. Aside from Swiss photographers, the Elysée's collection features works by Richard Avedon, Andy Warhol, Annie Liebowitz, and Martin Parr. In 2011, Charlie Chaplin's daughter Josephine donated 10,000 photographs that chronicle the actor's career. If you are a photography buff, this is the best art museum in Switzerland for you!

The Paul Klee Museum

At the core of The Paul Klee Museum is one of the most important collections of paintings, sketches, watercolours, and sculptures by the artist Paul Klee and serves as the premier global hub for the study of Klee's life and work. If you are into art history, this is the best art museum in Switzerland for you! Eighty per cent of the museum's collection is comprised of works on paper, which is in keeping with Klee's primary profession as a draughtsman. This art museum in Switzerland allows visitors to fully engage with the artist's life and work. The exhibition offers a glimpse into Klee's life and work via eighty rotating and chronologically grouped pieces, biographical photographs and videos, and archival materials. Located in the eastern part of Bern, close to Klee's grave at Schosshalden cemetery, this light-flooded glass and steel structure designed by Renzo Piano serves as a venue for literary, musical, and dance events. Meanwhile, at its Kindermuseum Creaviva, visitors can learn about the methods and themes used by the great artists through an interactive "learning by doing and experiencing" approach.

MAMCO

The original factory that is now Mamco has enormous windows, halls that seem to stretch on forever, and flooring that shows the footprints of long-gone machines, making it an ideal setting for the company's artwork. Even though there is no longer the traditional divide between permanent and temporary exhibits, the display area is altered three times yearly, giving each corner a unique feature. The museum has hosted four hundred and fifty exhibits since its 1994 opening, with artworks spanning the decades from the 1960s to the current day. Among the several artists represented by Mamco's holdings are Christo, Jenny Holzer, Franz Erhard Walther, Sarkis, Dan Flavin, and Sylvie Fleury. There used to be public baths here; hence, the event is titled "Nuit des Bains" (baths night), which is celebrated three times a year. Thousands of art enthusiasts and sightseers go to the neighbourhood every night for this event, which turns it into a massive gallery. This is the best art museum in Switzerland, for every art connoisseur!

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Museum Rietberg, Zurich

With its world-famous collection of artworks from Asia, Africa, the Americas, and Oceania, the Museum Rietberg Zurich stands as Switzerland's only art museum dedicated to non-European civilisations. The museum's presentation of artworks has two purposes: first, to bring attention to the amazing variety of creative expressions; and second, to arouse curiosity in and appreciation for many cultures, faiths, and worldviews. Also, people all across the globe go crazy for the spectacularly prepared special exhibits. A stroll in the peaceful Rieter Park, which overlooks the city and the Alps, allows visitors to see the fascinating interaction between the modern and the ancient. A green glass pavilion called the Emerald, which opened in 2007, serves as the entry to the new subterranean expansion wing, while the ancient villas convey their stories.