An Exhibition by Peter Zumthor, Stephan Kunz and Florian Puenter

On occasion of its 100th anniversary the Art Museum Graubünden is not focussing on its own history but lends art in Graubünden historical depth and simultaneously celebrates the Villa Planta in its special architectural distinctiveness. The former private residence has been serving as a museum since 1919.

On the basis of the architect Peter Zumthor’s idea - he was significantly involved in the renovation of the Villa in the 1980s – we have devised an exhibition, in which selected artworks from Graubünden are shown that originated before the Reformation. However, we do not show the historical objects themselves but photographs by Florio Puenter who in his work time and again reflects on aspects of cultural history, and as an artist could be won over for this project.

For the exhibition works were chosen from all fields of art and culture that reveal the enormous artistic wealth of the canton Graubünden: These include archaeological finds from the Calancatal as well as marble sculptures from Müstair, reliquaries from the cathedral treasury in Chur or frescoes from Waltensburg, a chest from the Engadine or figures of a lamentation from Domat/Ems. Florio Puenter has taken on the task of travelling to the sites and photographing the objects. In the exhibition they are reproduced true to scale in their original size. The black-and-white photographs accentuate the aesthetic quality of the chosen objects. By their placement in the villa they create a contrast with its coloured walls and moreover allow these to shine in new splendour.

With the eyes of today we look upon the art of former times and grant it fresh recognition. In this way and most importantly the artistic value of the objects manifests itself. However, what also becomes clear is the different meanings of these works dating back many centuries and conveying special contents and contexts. Thus various artistic concepts come together in the exhibition and make the museum into a full-featured House of Art.