Franziska Rogger23.04.2024Born in Russia, Ida Hoff became one of the first women to attend university in Switzerland around 1900. In addition to pursuing a career in medicine, she was a staunch advocate of women’s rights, guided by her feminist conscience and a penchant for irreverence. She found an outlet for the latter at the second Swiss Congress for Women's Interests in 1921, where she wittily subjected Ferdinand Hodler’s painting “The Day” to a fresh new feminist interpretation.
Barbara Basting29.02.2024Who paints older women? A look at art history shows that painters have always struggled with the subject matter and that they usually needed a pretext to even depict them at all.
Barbara Basting28.12.2023The Reformation brought stricter social mores to many places in Europe, and artists had to adapt if they didn’t want to lose commissions. But these social mores were not popular with everyone – as revealed by this painting by Hans Bock in Basel’s Kunstmuseum.
Benno Schubiger22.12.2023The French invasion 225 years ago not only brought about major political upheaval in Switzerland, but also death and destruction. Vestiges of acts of vandalism to cultural property can still be seen today.
Noah Businger07.11.2023When it comes to William Tell, the general consensus seems to be that he is a symbol of Switzerland’s patriotic national history. But a small monument in Ticino raises some questions.
Murielle Schlup31.10.2023Thanks to digital technology, the creation and sharing of portraits is now popular, cheap, and almost obligatory. Before the advent of photography, this task was fulfilled by portrait painting. We take a look at its origins and how it evolved.
Barbara Basting09.10.2023Linen production and trading was once the livelihood of many people in Europe, especially in eastern Switzerland. A famous landscape painting from the Netherlands in Kunsthaus Zürich tells a tale of global trade routes and mutual dependence.
Kurt Messmer18.07.2023Here is a simple test. The pilgrimage church of Hergiswald at the foot of Mount Pilatus contains a visually stunning depiction of biblical scenes from the baroque period, circa 1650. What response does this cultural-historical cosmos elicit from you?