An art donation to the Musée des beaux-arts de La Chaux-de-Fonds turned out to be much richer than initially communicated: the works left by Swiss collector Philippe Bodenmann are actually 218, not 150 as first announced. This was confirmed by David Lemaire, director of the museum in La Chaux-de-Fonds, in western Switzerland, speaking of a “pleasant surprise” that emerged only after the inventory was completed.
Key points
- Philippe Bodenmann’s donation includes a total of 218 works, 68 more than the 150 initially announced in 2025.
- The final number emerged only after opening some of the collector’s portfolios that had remained sealed.
- The collection includes Anglo-American conceptual art, Zurich concrete art, and the Swiss Neo-Geo scene.
- Among the artists represented are Joseph Kosuth, Lawrence Weiner, Royden Rabinowitch, Olivier Mosset, Marcia Hafif, Günther Förg, Hamish Fulton, and Richard Long.
- The entire donation is now on display in the exhibition Voyages en zigzag, which can be visited until 3 January 2027.
Expanded donation surprises the Musée des beaux-arts de La Chaux-de-Fonds
The museum presented the donation project to the political authorities in 2025, based on a count that later turned out to be incomplete. The final figure, almost 45% higher than the initial one, changes the real weight of the operation and places it among the most substantial bequests received by the institution in recent years.
From the initial announcement to the final inventory
Lemaire explained that the 150 works communicated at the beginning were those actually visible in the collector’s spaces at the time of the first inspection. “When we first announced the donation project to the political authorities, not all the portfolios had yet been opened and the inventory had not been completed,” the director said.
The sealed portfolios that revealed the additional works
Only the systematic opening of the portfolios that were still closed allowed the museum to reach the final number of 218 works. This detail says a lot about the nature of the collection: not a list already catalogued and ready for delivery, but a body of works accumulated over time and never fully inventoried before the donation.
Strengths of the Philippe Bodenmann collection
The Philippe Bodenmann collection stands out for the variety of movements represented, ranging from Anglo-American conceptual art to the Zurich concrete school and up to Swiss Neo-Geo. This stylistic breadth is what makes the donation particularly valuable for a regional museum.
Artistic styles and movements represented
The exhibition dedicated to the donation brings together works ranging from Anglo-American conceptual art to Zurich concrete art, passing through the Swiss Neo-Geo scene. This combination allows the museum to cover, with a single bequest, three distinct seasons of late 20th-century artistic research.
Key artists and the most important works
Among the names represented in the collection are Joseph Kosuth, Lawrence Weiner, and Royden Rabinowitch, together with works by Olivier Mosset, Marcia Hafif, and Günther Förg. The collection is particularly strong in British conceptual artists linked to walking as an artistic gesture, especially Hamish Fulton and Richard Long: an area that the museum could not previously claim to cover with the same depth.
Lemaire points to Kosuth’s Intentio (project), dated 1985, and an untitled monochrome relief by Andreas Christen from 1998 as the most significant works for the institution. Both artists had already had solo exhibitions at the museum, in 1985 and 1994 respectively, but before the donation the institution did not own any works by Kosuth and only one work by Christen. The director describes Intentio (project) as “a fundamental work in the artist’s career,” which introduces “a change of scale, the use of color, and a much more complex relationship with text” compared to Kosuth’s earlier “tautological” works and the Art as Idea as Idea series. Christen’s relief is described as “particularly spectacular”: thanks to its plastic effect, the human eye cannot perceive that it is a monochrome, and the shadowed areas change with the movement of the light.
The impact of the donation and the museum exhibition
Beyond the number of works, the donation directly strengthens the museum’s historical identity: the collection particularly enriches the core of Zurich concrete art, an aspect that has always been central to the institution’s profile, with several important paintings by Max Bill.
An unconditional donation, the result of over 40 years of trust
Bodenmann did not impose any conditions on the bequest. Lemaire describes it as “an act of great trust in our institution, which the collector has known for more than 40 years.” Precisely because of the internal coherence of the collection, according to the director, it was important for Bodenmann that it be offered and shown as a single whole, without dispersal.
The Voyages en zigzag exhibition presents the entire collection
Bodenmann’s collection is being shown in its entirety for the first time in the exhibition Voyages en zigzag: La collection de Philippe Bodenmann, which can be visited until 3 January 2027. This is the occasion on which the public and critics will finally be able to see together all the works that make up the bequest, from conceptual pieces to monochrome reliefs, in a single exhibition route.
For a regional museum like the one in La Chaux-de-Fonds, filling historical gaps in areas such as British conceptual art linked to walking or Kosuth’s work means consolidating a permanent collection that it would hardly have been able to build through ordinary acquisitions. In this sense, the donation goes beyond the value of the simple figure: it redefines, work by work, the profile with which the institution will present itself to visitors in the coming years.
FAQ
How many works did Philippe Bodenmann donate to the Musée des beaux-arts de La Chaux-de-Fonds?
Philippe Bodenmann donated a total of 218 works to the museum, a number higher than the 150 initially announced.
What types of art are included in the Bodenmann donation?
The donation includes Anglo-American conceptual art, Zurich concrete art, and Swiss Neo-Geo art.
Are there any notable artists among the donated works?
Yes, among the artists represented are Joseph Kosuth, Lawrence Weiner, Royden Rabinowitch, Olivier Mosset, Marcia Hafif, Günther Förg, Hamish Fulton, and Richard Long.
Is the Bodenmann donation currently on display at the museum?
Yes, the entire donation is on display in the exhibition Voyages en zigzag until 3 January 2027.
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As expert in digital marketing, Amelia began working in the fintech sector in 2014 after writing her thesis on Bitcoin technology. Previously author for several international crypto-related magazines and CMO at Eidoo. She is now the co-founder and editor-in-chief of The Cryptonomist and Econique.
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