Mentioned in my entry about my visit to the Meisterwerke der Sammlung Im Obersteg exhibition in Kunstmuseum Basel, I also saw the works on show in the Old Building. There was no ‘special’ exhibition held. Due to the particular lighting of the gallery, I have only a few pictures to share.
The characteristics of the Old Building and difference in the display of work to the New Building were immediately evident. The Old building’s galleries are mostly constructed of long rows of corridors, and allowed less natural light inside from the placement of the windows and the building itself (but of course, the windows that could let much light in were covered with thin, pale curtains to block the UV rays from damaging any artworks). Many rooms had dark wood paneling in contrast to the newer building’s concrete and metal.
If you visit Switzerland to see their established artists, here’s the gallery to visit; granted you’re not out to take too many pictures of the works unmarred by the strobe lightings’ glare.
There were four floors to the Old Building, and one floor dedicated to Swiss illustrator, painter, graphic artist, prop master… and mask maker, Max Sulzbachner. All of Sulzbachner’s paintings, prints, drawings, and props were framed behind glass or encased in display boxes (and the artificial strobe lights make it impossible to take pictures without their reflections). These rooms were quite dim at times, and cramped-feeling. I must’ve been spoiled by visiting the much more open-plan New Building first.
I enjoyed some of Sulzbachner’s works much more than others. Perhaps because I understand very little about stage shows. There was a variety of mediums; woodcuts, paintings using gauche, oil and ink… unfortunately, due to the dimness of many of the rooms and corridors, I don’t have much worth sharing here.
If you’re fluent in high German, you’ll find a lot to read about Max Sulzbachner in this museum. In fact, to get the most out of the gallery spaces, it’s best to know high German. No multi-lingual tombstones here!
There were oil on canvas works by the Swiss painter Alexandre Calame who focused on landscape scenery. I would have liked to have seen more of this artists work. Alexandre Calame also drew scenery in a very traditional manner (not illustrative).
The intimate details one can see in many large-scale paintings up-close are on show in Calame’s work. A great deal of traditional (i.e. conventional oil) paintings are best appreciated at a distance, but looking very closely at Calame’s landscape paintings, the marks made are clean.
To be expected, there are many famous Swiss landscape painter’s works on show (though many of those artists painted portraits, too). I like how soft and comforting the colours in Ferdinand Holder’s pieces are. I particularly enjoyed Genfersee mit Jura (‘Lake Geneva with Jura Hills’). If you enjoy almost dream-like pastel landscapes with a grand yet grounded feel to them, Holder’s artwork is worth researching.
In one of the longer corridors, Walter kurt Wiemken’s oil painting, Das Leben (or ‘The Life’ in English) caught my eye. There’s so much going on in this picture, you could spend a log time mulling over it. Why are all of these figures gathered? Why the cannons? The angels? The clown! It’s very fun for me to look at.
I spent less time in the Old Building as I was aware that I had little time to spend exploring it the museum’s closing, and I had to head out of the city before long. …I missed seeing a lot of the oldest paintings that were in the collection. There was even a third building to Kunstmuseum Basel (that I had no time to visit)! Such is life.
Still, even though I left without taking many (good) pictures, I can look back and say it was great to be introduced to a number of artists foreign to me. Hopefully, the next time I visit any foreign galleries, I have the time on my hands to spend a whole day on them!
DESIGN WORKS 