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“As a curator, I believe that’s what we need to think about: How can we take art that has been here for many, many centuries, or maybe has been seen a million times – like an Andy Warhol piece – and make it look fresh again? Reveal things that the public may not have seen before.” —Dr. Josef Helfenstein
A highlight of the annual June pilgrimage to Basel is always a visit to their incomparable museums. From natural history and ancient art to cutting-edge contemporary, Basel’s museums never cease to be a respite from the frenzy of Art Basel. But did you know that Basel is also host to what is possibly the oldest public art museum in the world? The Kunstmuseum Basel is not only the largest public art collection in Switzerland (sorry, Geneva!), but in tracing its roots to the purchase of a collection of Hans Holbein works by the city of Basel in 1661, it lays claim to being the oldest, still-existing, publicly owned and accessible art museum in the world.
For this video, Art Basel toured the Kunstmuseum Basel and visited with its Director, Dr. Josef Helfenstein who talks about the role of the museum as an art institution and in the civic life of Basel.
