Kunsthalle Basel is a place for innovative contemporary art exhibitions of an emerging generation of artists. As Switzerland's oldest and still most active institution for contemporary art, Kunsthalle Basel forms a vital part of Basel's cultural centre and is located next to the city's theatre, opposite the concert house Stadtcasino, and in the same building as the famed Restaurant Kunsthalle. Bringing together local and international contemporary art tendencies, Kunsthalle Basel is well known for its presentation of thought-provoking new artworks and display methodologies, as well as for its wide range of public programs that include artist talks, performances, and film screenings. With a long list of esteemed curators and directors who have helmed the institution, including over the last decades,, Peter Pakesch, and Adam Szymczyk, it has, since November 2014, been directed by Los Angeles-born Elena Filipovic.
History
The construction of Kunsthalle Basel was prompted in 1864 by the merger of the Basler Künstlergesellschaft and the founded in 1839. At the inauguration of the building in spring 1872, the former president of the Basler Kunstverein, Johann Jakob Im Hof, summed up the programme of the future Kunsthalle: ’to provide a place for the fine arts in order to stimulate, promote and spread artistic interest within our hometown as well as to foster friendly relations between artists and art lovers.’ In the 1920s and 1930s, before the opening of Kunstmuseum Basel, Kunsthalle Basel was home to and displayed a part of the public art collections. Due to financial issues in the 1950s, there was a time when the building was rented to the state, but, after being renovated in 1969, it was returned to the Kunstverein.
Architecture
Using revenue from two of the ferry services across the Rhine, Kunsthalle Basel was built between 1869 and 1872 based on a design by. The artists Arnold Böcklin, Karl Brünner, Ernst Stückelberg and Charles Iguel contributed the architectural adornment of the building. The ground floor of the building was dedicated to serve as an artist's clubhouse. By 1927, the building had been extended several times to additionally house a workshop for sculptors and a sculpture hall. Between 1969 and 1973 the Kunsthalle underwent a first period of renovation. The library, whose inventory goes back to the founding year of the Kunstverein and today has a focus on contemporary art publications, in 1992 has been installed permanently in the rooms of the former caretaker apartment. In 2004, the Steinberg building underwent further, major renovations executed by the architects, with the intent of both restoring its former glory and simultaneously updating it in an attempt to prolong its relevance in the art and architecture world. In the same instance, the Swiss Architecture Museum S AM moved into the first floor of the building.
