Unexpected density of art
A mid-sized industrial city whose collections exceed far larger ones.
An art museum in the city of Winterthur northeast of Zurich, one of three buildings that together form the Kunst Museum Winterthur institution. What makes Winterthur unexpected is the density of art in it: a mid-sized industrial city holding collections that exceed those of far larger European cities. The reason is historical — wealthy merchants and industrialists in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries collected and gave their holdings to the city. This building shows art from the nineteenth century to the contemporary: work by Swiss and European artists, with a strong emphasis on modern painting. Alongside it in the same city is the Oskar Reinhart Collection, holding work by Van Gogh, Cézanne, Renoir and Manet — among the most important private collections in Switzerland and worth the visit on its own. It is not in Zurich: Winterthur lies about twenty-five kilometres northeast, reached by direct train in around twenty minutes. It has a weekly closing day — check before going.
A mid-sized industrial city whose collections exceed far larger ones.
Merchants and manufacturers collected and gave their holdings to the city.
Van Gogh, Cézanne, Renoir and Manet in the same city, separately.
Winterthur, about 25 km northeast of Zurich
For anyone who likes art, clearly yes. Twenty minutes by train for two first-rate collections — this museum and the Oskar Reinhart — with far lower prices and crowds than Zurich. Half a day covers one, a full day both with the city.
A collection assembled by a wealthy Swiss merchant in the first half of the twentieth century and given to the state, shown in his house on a hill above Winterthur. It holds work by Van Gogh, Cézanne, Renoir, Manet, Goya and others, among the most important private collections in Europe, still displayed in the house it was gathered in.
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