Basel: Peter Zumthor builds for Fondation Beyeler

The new building for the museum is being constructed on the previously private site of the Iselin-Weber Park in Riehen, which, like the directly adjacent park of the Fondation Beyeler, is to be made accessible to the public.

The project - which includes the acquisition of land and real estate, financing of the new building, and operation and maintenance for the first ten years - is being privately financed. Firm commitments of CHF 50 million have already been made, including donations from the Wyss Foundation and the Daros Collection of the Stephan Schmidheiny family. In total, the costs for construction and commissioning of the project are estimated at CHF 80 million.

An international panel has now unanimously selected the project by architect Peter Zumthor, who has won the prestigious Pritzker Prize, among others. "The interplay between people, nature, art and architecture is a cornerstone of the success of the Fondation Beyeler and was also essential for the development of Renzo Piano's prize-winning museum building. Peter Zumthor brings the sensitivity and experience to realize a building of outstanding quality at this special location," says Sam Keller, director of the Fondation Beyeler, commenting on the decision. The project is to be presented to the public in late fall/winter after it has been drawn up.

Zumthor has designed the Kunsthaus Bregenz and the Kolumba Kunstmuseum in Cologne, among others, and the LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) is currently being built according to his designs. Zumthor became known to a wider public through the Therme Vals and the Swiss Pavilion at Expo 2000 in Hanover.

The Fondation Beyeler in Riehen claims to be the most visited art museum in Switzerland. Over 6.2 million people from all over the world have visited the museum since it opened in 1997. (ah)