Ivernois Castle, or Château d'Ivernois, is an historic

château A château (, ; plural: châteaux) is a manor house, or palace, or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking re ...

in the village of

Môtiers Môtiers is a village near Neuchâtel, Switzerland. It was also a municipality in the district of Val-de-Travers in the canton of Neuchâtel in Switzerland. On 1 January 2009, the former municipalities of Boveresse, Buttes, Couvet, Fleurier ...

, in the

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

Val-de-Travers Val-de-Travers is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the canton of Neuchâtel in Switzerland. It was created on 1 January 2009, when the former municipalities of Boveresse, Buttes, Neuchâtel, Buttes, Couvet, Fleurier, Les Bayards, ...

Canton of Neuchâtel The Republic and Canton of Neuchâtel (; ; ; ) is a mostly French-speaking canton in western Switzerland. In 2007, its population was 169,782, of whom 39,654 (or 23.4%) were foreigners. The capital is Neuchâtel. History County of Neuchâtel ...

, in Switzerland.

Heritage listing

Château d'Ivernois is a Swiss heritage site of national significance, located in Môtiers, Val-de-Travers, Neuchâtel canton. The complex dates back to the early 18th century.

Museums

At least part of the buildings that were once part of the landowner's property, at Grande Rue 7, Môtiers, are now owned by the Burkhardt-Felder Foundation. The foundation was established by Gerard and Theresa Burkhardt-Felder in 2002, who had lived in Australia for 25 years, where they developed an interest in both

Aboriginal Australian art Indigenous Australian art includes art made by Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders, including collaborations with others. It includes works in a wide range of media including painting on leaves, bark painting, wood carving, rock ...

and motor cars. Gerard Burkhardt-Felder was a merchant banker, and at one time chairman of Mount Edon Gold Mines in

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

. Between 2003 and 2006, they converted a former agricultural building (built in 1721) and

riding hall A riding hall, indoor arena, indoor school (UK English), or indoor ring (US English) is a building (part of an equestrian facility) that is specially designed for indoor horse riding. Smaller, private buildings contain only space for riding, w ...

(built in 1856) into two museums: one dedicated to Aboriginal Australian art, called La Grange, and the other to motor cars, called Le Manège. La Grange, the Aboriginal art museum, is a large exhibition space that has hosted a series of exhibitions showcasing the work of world-famous Aboriginal artists. It also houses a permanent collection, which includes both traditional and contemporary Aboriginal Australian art, from

bark painting Bark painting is an Australian Aboriginal art form, involving painting on the interior of a strip of tree bark. While examples of painted bark shelters were found in the south-eastern states (then colonies) of Tasmania, Victoria, and New South W ...

s and ceremonial objects to modern painting on canvas. La Grange opened in 2008, opened with an exhibition of 53 works, including boomerangs, Tiwi sculptures, and a large work by a group of artists from Wangkatungka. Le Manège houses a permanent exhibition of cars, ranging in date of manufacture from 1897 to 1980. Of the 23 cars in the museum in 2009, 14 had been purchased in Australia.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ivernois Castle Cultural property of national significance in the canton of Neuchâtel Castles in the canton of Neuchâtel

Heritage listing

Museums

See also

References