Franz Gertsch Museum

Museum Franz Gertsch is a privately funded art museum in Burgdorf, Switzerland, dedicated to the work of Swiss painter and printmaker Franz Gertsch. Opened in autumn 2002, it houses a comprehensive collection of his output from 1987 onward, assembled through the Willy Michel Foundation. The institution occupies a purpose-built architectural complex of exposed concrete designed by Swiss architects Hansueli Jörg and Martin Sturm, and supplements its permanent holdings with temporary exhibitions of contemporary art.

The museum originated in a 1998 decision by Burgdorf industrialist Willy Michel and Franz Gertsch to create a jointly maintained institution. Michel secured full financing for the project and established the Willy Michel Foundation, which forms the basis of the collection. The museum opened to the public in autumn 2002. From its inception, the project was conceived as a private initiative without public funding, with the foundation continuing to underwrite the institution and its acquisitions.

The collection comprises the complete works of Franz Gertsch dating from the previous twenty years at the time of founding, that is, from 1987 onward. This comprehensive assemblage is described as unique in its completeness for an artist of Gertsch's stature. The holdings include the paintings Silvia I and Gräser I-IV (Grasses I-IV), numerous woodcuts, and several large-format triptychs. The museum augments these permanent holdings through loans from other museums and private lenders, and actively pursues further purchases to expand the collection.

Signature works in the collection include the painting Silvia I, the four-part series Gräser I-IV, and multiple large-scale woodcut triptychs. These pieces represent Gertsch's mature period and his sustained exploration of the intersection between painting and photography. The triptych format in particular marks a significant aspect of his graphic work.

The museum building was completed in 2002 following an urban design competition. Architects Hansueli Jörg and Martin Sturm developed the spaces in close collaboration with Franz Gertsch, tailoring the exhibition environment to the works on display. The structure consists of two exposed concrete cubes set at right angles to one another, enclosing a museum garden. The total exhibition area covers approximately 1000 square metres, distributed across five clearly proportioned rooms. The material palette is deliberately reduced, yielding pure white cubes that subordinate themselves entirely to the artworks. Additional facilities include a 50-seat art café and a video lounge screening a documentary about Franz Gertsch.

Museum Franz Gertsch is located in Burgdorf in the canton of Bern, Switzerland. The institution is privately owned and operated, funded through the Willy Michel Foundation rather than public sources. Its present role encompasses both the permanent display of Franz Gertsch's work and regular temporary exhibitions featuring contemporaries, younger comparable artists, and contrasting approaches to reality, with particular emphasis on the crossover between painting and photography.