Author: Maarten Koning

The Merian Botanical Gardens

The Merian Gardens (Merian Gärten) are a botanical garden on the outskirts of Basel. Their history dates back to 1824 when Christoph Merian (1800-1858) acquired the Brüglingerhof and 56 hectares of land.

The area was transferred to the Christoph Merian Foundation. This Foundation developed the botanical garden in 1968. The Brüglingerhof remained an independent agricultural enterprise until 2012.

The garden is situated amidst the river landscape of the Birs. The terraces are clearly visible and divide the gardens topographically.

The gardens consists of the rhododendron valley, the medicinal garden, the dry biotope and collection of around 1500 historical iris species and other flora.

(Source and further information: www.meriangaerten.ch).

Max Kettel and Valais

Switzerland has always been a crossroads of political, economic and social developments, culture and trade from Roman times onwards.

The exhibition La Suisse Magazine. Max Kettel. Les reportages de 1926 à 1960 in Martigny shows for the first time the production of the (forgotten) photographer Max Keller (1902-1961).

More than 250 photographs and 120 magazines with his photographs are on show. They illustrate the reportages he made from 1926 to 1960 in and about Wallis and Switzerland.

Kettel was an excellent observer. He was a witness of  changes and his photographs are documentaries.

The Wallis Media Library (Médiathèque Valais/ Mediathek Wallis) offers free access to thousands of documents from different media, books, magazines, films, photography and modern media.

The library also organizes exhibitions and other events of cultural-historical topics. (Source and further information: www.mediatheque.ch).

 

Parzival on the Julier Pass

The legend of knight Parzival is one of the most beautiful epics in European literature. In the theatre tower (Theaterturm) on the Julier Pass, there is no knight’s spectacle around King Arthur’s Round Table and no Wagnerian view of the world either.

The story is told again. It is about the experiences and life story of a lonely man who goes in search of the meaning of life and finally ends up in front of a castle, where he stays for the rest of his life. The counterpart of this version of Parzival is about his father Gahmuret, who only wants to accumulate heroic deeds, marriages and fame. He always goes further and finds no peace.

Performances Parzival: 31 January, 7, 8, 20, 23, 29 February, 7 March, Theaterturm on the Julier Pass. Performances Gahmuret in Riom, Clavadeira: 6, 9, 21, 22, 5 February, 8 March. (Source and further information: www.origen.ch).