Dennis Hollingsworth

Das Neue Aargauer Kunsthaus

I wanted to share these pictures form our visit to the opening of the Aargauer Kunsthaus in nearby (to Z?rich) Aarau, a train ride away. It's a museum devote to Swiss painting (although I think there might be exceptions to this rule). (I didn't get to the street for a camera shot, so this is a shot of the newspaper.) The collection is immense and it was great to see so many cool paintings.

I found a translated website at this address for your info:

http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=de&u=http://www.ag.ch/kunsthaus/&prev=/search%3Fq%3Daargauer%2Bkunsthaus%26num%3D100%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26ie%3DUTF-8%26oe%3DUTF-8%26newwindow%3D1%26safe%3Doff

This is a shot on the roof, the path from the train station leads to the rear of the building. The architects: Herzog and de Meuron.

Coming in from the rear is probably the best way to go because you get to go down the spiral stair that's encased in green glass.

The roof as a social gathering space and the entry as a compressing vortex. The interior lobby walls are angled a little like Superman's Artic Fortress with twin spiral stair interior and exterior on each end. The interior wall finish was frosty like ice.

It was the opening weekend and the place was crowded. The museum arranged a dance company to enliven the place with static placements like this and dynamic showy pieces of girls in swimsuits and noseplugs in a Busby Berkely type routine. I was snapping pictures until I got busted by the gallery guards.