Museum Franz Gertsch is an

art museum An art museum or art gallery is a building or space for the display of art, usually from the museum's own Collection (artwork), collection. It might be in public or private ownership and may be accessible to all or have restrictions in place. A ...

Burgdorf, Switzerland Burgdorf (french: Berthoud; High Alemannic: ''Bùùrdlef'') is the largest city in the Emmental in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. It was the capital of the district of the same name until 2010, when it became part of the new Emmental dist ...

. 300px, Burgdorf (Switzerland), Museum Franz Gertsch

The architecture

In close cooperation with

Franz Gertsch Franz Gertsch (8 March 1930 – 21 December 2022) was a Swiss painter who was known for his large format hyperrealistic portraits. Biography Gertsch was born 1930 in Mörigen, Switzerland. Between 1947 and 1952 he studied with Max von Mühle ...

, the Swiss architects Hansueli Jörg and Martin Sturm designed exhibition spaces that are aligned in their function with reference to the works on display.The museum building, completed in 2002, is divided into two exposed concrete cubes, which stand at right angles to one another and surround a museum garden. The total exhibition area of some 1000 metres². (10,000 sq ft) is divided into five clearly proportioned rooms. With the material selection reduced to the minimum, the rooms appear as pure white cubes and stand entirely in the service of the works displayed. Apart from the exhibition rooms, there is a 50-seat artcafé at the visitors' disposal, and a video lounge, where a documentary on Franz Gertsch is shown during the day.

The collection

In 1998, the Burgdorf industrialist

Willy Michel Wilhelm "Willy" Michel (born 29 April 1947) is a Swiss business magnate, billionaire and art collector. He is the founder of Ypsomed Selfcare Solutions, a pharmaceutical company that develops self-injection and diagnostic systems. Michel rema ...

made a decision, together with Franz Gertsch, to create a museum to be maintained by them both. Willy Michel secured the financing for the entire project and established the willy michel foundation, which provides the basis for the museum's collection. This collection comprises the complete works of Franz Gertsch dating from the past 20 years. These specifically include the paintings Silvia I and Gräser I-IV (Grasses I-IV) as well as many woodcuts, among them several large-scale triptychs. In addition, the museum expands its collection through the loan of additional works from other museums or privately, as well as attempting to purchase further works.

Temporary exhibitions

Besides the presentation of Franz Gertsch's works, the museum is a regular venue for temporary exhibitions of a wide spectrum of contemporary art. Contemporaries and comparable younger colleagues, also contrasting approaches to reality are the exhibition themes, with the crossover between painting and photography giving a further emphasis.

Notes

External links

Museum Franz Gertsch
{{Authority control Art museums and galleries in Switzerland Museums in the Canton of Bern

Museum Franz Gertsch Museum Franz Gertsch is an art museum in Burgdorf, Switzerland Burgdorf (french: Berthoud; High Alemannic: ''Bùùrdlef'') is the largest city in the Emmental in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. It was the capital of the district of the s ...

Art museums established in 2002 Buildings and structures completed in 2002

21st-century architecture in Switzerland