Founded in 1997 to house the collection of collector Ernst Beyeler, Fondation Beyeler is currently the most attended art museum in Switzerland.  Vernissage TV has just posted an interview with director Sam Keller, recounting the museum’s first 15 years of operation and looking forward to its upcoming projects and goals.  Keller says: “In the beginning I think no-one could have envisioned that in such short term it would get on the map as being one of the most important museums not only in Switzerland, but also having an international reputation as being a house which shows art at the highest quality. So the development has been a quite steady one. ”
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Ai Weiwei, Rebars-Lucerne (Installation View) via Galerie Urs Meile

Blurring the line between social, political and artistic space, the work of dissident Chinese artist Ai Weiwei uses his practice to give voice to marginalized facets of the Chinese cultural and political landscape.  His is an art of awareness, presenting the political-social climate of China in his own terms, merging the presentation of his art with that of his own experience. (more…)

‪‬Financial Times sheds light on the high risk—and premiums—of art insurance as art market prices continue to increase more than ever, with the traditional free ports of Switzerland now facing changes to customs laws which will require artwork information and value to be declared

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All photos by Caroline Claisse.

Andrea Thal and Thomas Hirschhorn represent Switzerland in the 2011 Venice Biennale.  Previous representatives have included Silvia Bächli and Fabrice Gygi (2009), Ugo Rondinone (2007), and Pipilotti Rist (2005) whose work is visible in the Arsenale.

Hirschhorn is a Bern-born, Paris-based artist best known for large-scale “DIY” style installations using duct tape and tinfoil.  Thal’s practice is based in music and performance; she runs an artist-run gallery space in Zurich, Les Complices.* Hirschhorn has also created a special website for the project, which provides insight into his working process: Crystals of Resistance.

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Spring Love (2010) by Beatriz Milhazes, via Fondation Beyeler

Currently on view at the Fondation Beyeler is an exhibition featuring work by renowned Brazilian artist Beatriz Milhazes (b. 1960 Rio de Janeiro). Incorporating basic motifs from the diverse and tropical culture of Brazil, Milhazes’ work also recalls symbolism from the history of Brazilian culture. After major exhibitions including those at the Museum of Modern Art, New York, the Fondation Cartier, Paris, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo, and the Pinacoteca, São Paulo, this is  the artist’s first exhibition in Switzerland. The solo exhibit will feature four new large-scale paintings revolving around the theme of the four seasons which were commissioned for the show. Also included are a selection of the artist’s colorful collages as well as a mobile and a vibrant floor work.

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Yves Klein, “Peinture feu couleur sans titre” (1962). Via Museo D’Arte Moderna Di Lugano.

On view now, the Museo D’Arte Moderna Di Lugano is displaying works by Yves Klein, a prominent artist from the sixties. The exhibit focuses on his collaboration with Rotraut Uecker, both Klein’s wife and an artist who shared his use of imagery and poetics.  This exhibition is curated by Bruno Corà and Daniel Moquay who worked in partnership with the Archives Yves Klein of Paris. Klein’s work will be displayed alongside twenty-two of Rotraut’s metallic sculptures which can be located around the city in parks and squares.

Yves Klein, “Portrait relief d’Arman” (1962). Via Museo D’Arte Moderna Di Lugano.

Related Links:
Museo D’Arte Moderna Di Lugano Exhibition
Yves Klein Archives

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