Agenda

The Museum stages an exhibition on 19th-century orientalist photography. At that time, foreign travel to the Middle East experienced a boom. Some of the classic stopovers on these tours were Athens, Beirut, Damascus, Jerusalem and Constantinople. The popularity of this type of travel was enhanced further by the then still relatively new technology of photography, which increased the allure of such journeys for those who had stayed at home. The selection of photographs from the Ruth and Peter Herzog collection on display is a series of historically important works. Special focus is on archaeological sites in the Middle East.

In the 20th century, Swiss designers and producers had a clear idea of the perfect furnishing. Initially, the abstract form was a theme. Flexible tubular steel furniture was developed in the 1930s, while the unity of elegant form and function was propagated mid-century. Around 1968, everyday culture and Pop Art conquered the living room. A decade later, the postmodern diversity of styles was celebrated until the minimalist tradition was rediscovered at the end of the century. Seven sample rooms (Ideales Wohnen), furnished with gems of the museum collection, present the most important trends in modern Swiss furniture design.

The exhibition pays tribute to Hans Josephsohn (1920-2012) on the occasion of the centenary of his birth. It focuses on a series of brass sculptures made between 1950 and 2006. These works exemplify the central role played by the human figure in Josephsohn’s art and document all the types that the artist himself used to classify his work: standing, seated and reclining figures, half-figures and reliefs. His works are on permanent display at the Museo La Congiunta in Giornico, inaugurated in 1992, and at the Kesselhaus Josephsohn in St Gallen, opened in 2003.