There’s more to Zurich than finance – the Swiss city is boosting its cultural scene, meaning more options for travellers with downtime, says Tamara Thiessen.
To mark its centenary last year, Zurich’s Kunsthaus museum (kunsthaus.ch) staged a major exhibition entitled “Art and Architecture” to celebrate one of the city’s sons, architect Karl Moser. Moser played a big part in the museum’s illustrious history – in 1925, the so-called “father of modernism” transformed the building on Heimplatz into a jugendstil (German art nouveau) dream of motif tiles and steel framed glass.
And now the museum is getting another major makeover. During the next four years, UK architectural firm David Chipperfield will oversee a SFr 150 million (£100 million) museum extension that will add 15,000 sqm of exhibition space, an art garden and recreation zones.
Kunsthaus spokesman Bjorn Quellenberg says: “Presently the museum can show less than 10 per cent of its total collection, whereas the international standard is 20 per cent; there are some 100 masterpieces permanently in storage. We are about to take a great leap forward in terms of showing off the collection, which includes a wide range of French paintings along with highlights such as Giacometti, Munch, classical modernism, 17th-century Dutch painting and Italian Baroque.”
The evolution of the museum is a prime example of the cultural revolution gripping the Swiss city. Hans Peter Kaiser, manager of the historic four-star Hotel Adler (hotel-adler.ch) in Zurich’s Aldstadt (old town), believes an attitude shift has led to the city’s long-established cultural riches being more vigorously promoted and funded.
“Zurich is transforming from a stubborn, narrow-minded city dominated by a Lutheran, reformist mindset to a relaxed and open place,” he says. “We still have the reputation of being a business city, with IBM’s European headquarters relocating here, and Swiss Life and all the major banks [based here too], but a lot of the current growth is being driven by the cultural sector.”
Peter Haerle, director of Zurich City Council’s cultural department, agrees that a sea change is taking place. “The creative sector has begun to emerge from the shadow of the banking industry and has established itself as a second, very strong economic sector,” he says. Culture is in fact “the most dynamic sector of the economy”, Haerle adds, faring well even during the global financial crisis.
The industry is currently worth SFr 14 billion (£9.5 billion) a year, or 7.7 per cent of GDP, with 9 per cent of employees in Zurich working in the cultural-creative sector. Haerle says: “The council recently announced its goals for the next four years, and the development and promotion of Zurich as a cultural and creative city is one of them.”
Aside from the new-look Kunsthaus, a number of exciting projects are under way. Also seeing an extension is the city’s national museum, the Landesmuseum (nationalmuseum.ch). Scheduled for completion next year, the SFr 111 million (£75 million) project, funded by private sponsors as well as national and local government, will boost its exhibition space.
Also taking shape is the city’s Lowenbrau contemporary arts district in Escher-Wyss. Haerle says: “It opens its doors in summer next year and will be an important meeting point for art lovers from all over the world.” Located in a converted 1897 brewery, the silo-topped Lowenbrau is undergoing a two-year revitalisation, forcing its permanent contemporary art tenants – the Kunsthalle (kunsthallezurich.ch) and Migros Museum (migrosmuseum.ch) – to move out temporarily as a residential tower and more galleries are added.
The Lowenbrau is a prime example of Zurich’s co-operative approach to culture. Angelica Schempp, Zurich Tourism’s market manager for Central Europe, says that while local government is legally bound to invest in the sector, banks, business and individuals also play a strong role in sponsoring and managing it.
“Several institutions, such as the Museum Rietberg [an institution dedicated to non-European art], are owned by the city. Some 1-1.5 per cent of the total city budget goes to supporting culture,” she says.
Meanwhile, the former industrial zone of Zurich-West – or “Zuri-West”, as the locals call it – is a hotbed of cultural and commercial developments. Squished between the Limmat River and the train line, its old breweries, rail viaducts and soap factories are making way for dance projects, relocated museums, apartments, spas, shops and hotels.
The transformation started a decade ago with the conversion of an old shipbuilding yard, the Schiffbau, into a performance art centre, which now houses Switzerland’s largest theatre, the Schauspielhaus (schauspielhaus.ch), along with jazz clubs and restaurants. An old metal foundry opposite houses the arts fair venue Puls 5 (puls5.ch).
Throughout the year, Zurich-West will be the city’s largest construction site as urban developments that fuse architecture, culture, vast public spaces, concrete and glass transform both its streetscapes and skyline.
Last year, a 19th-century railway bridge in the district was converted into a lively, 450-metre-long market, the Viaduktstrasse (im-viadukt.ch), where woodworkers, wrought-iron art studios, architects, fashion, jewellery and graphic designers can be found alongside delicatessens, tapas bars, tailors and antique bookstores. Next year, an old dairy will morph into the Zurich University of Applied Science campus and cultural centre, as new properties such as the B2 Boutique hotel emerge from stunning conversions of old breweries.
One of the knock-on effects of the blooming cultural scene is growth in the city’s hotel industry. According to the Swiss Federal Statistical Office, room numbers will jump by close to 1,000 by 2012, to almost 8,000. Several developments in Zurich-West will see hotels blended with commercial zones, apartments, shops, public spaces, cafés and restaurants. Germany’s funky 25 Hours Hotel group, for example, is preparing to open the doors of a boutique property next year in the Hard Turm Park complex, a residential and commercial development anchored to a giant urban area – the Turbineplatz – on the Limmat.
Zurich Tourism’s Schempp says: “From January to November 2010 we had a 7.6 per cent growth in overnight stays compared with the same period in 2009. There are no figures to show how much of this was down to the promotion of cultural attractions, but we have definitely managed to change the image of Zurich as a purely business destination.”
Hotel Adler’s Kaiser has noticed a growing number of cultural tourists at his hotel as well as more co-operation between hotels and arts institutions. “We work closely with the Kunsthaus – it regularly brings us clientele and the industry is growing fast,” he says.
Other hoteliers confirm the palpable effect of cultural tourism on their business. Monica Voegeli, manager of the elegant Hotel Continental Zurich (mgallery.com), says: “Over the past ten years, the city and state governments have put a lot of money into making Zurich a top cultural destination, establishing the Opera House [opernhaus.ch] as one of the leading ones in Europe, creating new theatres, cultural centres such as the Schiffbau and events including the Zurich Theatre Spectacle and the Zurich Film Festival [see below]. We strongly promote the cultural side to our business clientele with various offers including a museum pass, and by sponsoring events.”
Jorg Arnold, general manager of the 650-year-old Storchen Zurich (storchen.ch), adds: “The much more professional promotion of culture has brought us a lot of custom. The theatre, opera, museums and music festivals have been much better exposed through marketing, and my hotel, as all others, profits directly.” In this major financial centre, culture is big business indeed. n
Visit zuerich.com to buy a 24- or 72-hour Zurich Card, which provides free public transport, free admission to museums and various other discounts.
HOTEL NEWS
- The four-star, 159-room Ramada Zurich City (ramada.com) opened its doors in February in a new building in Kreis 5, a 15-minute tram ride from the centre.
- The luxury 347-room business property Swissotel Zurich (swissotel.com), located in Oerlikon district, one train stop from the airport, was given a SFr 2.2 million (£1.5 million) overhaul last year, with its conference facilities expanded to accommodate up to 1,000 delegates.
- In March last year, the 262-room Zurich Marriott (marriott.com) refurbished its business suites and 74 rooms and added a 90 sqm meeting space. It’s located on the Neumuhlequai, near Hauptbahnhof train station.
- The five-star, 300-room Renaissance Zurich Tower (marriott.com) will open in August this year in the eye-catching Mobimo Tower in Zurich-West. Positioning itself as a “big boutique” hotel, it has a large fitness and wellness area, several restaurants, a sun terrace, 14th-floor executive rooms with views of the city and lake, and an executive lounge.
- The four-star B2 Boutique hotel and spa (bookmarkhotels.ch) is due to open in Zurich-West’s redeveloped Hurlimann Brewery in spring 2012. A major feature of the 60-room property is a 24-hour library bar, with 30,000 books and local wines by the glass. It also has a thermal spa.
- In autumn 2012, dynamic German design hotel group 25 Hours Hotels (25hours-hotels.com) is set to open a 120-room property, its first in Switzerland, in the trendy Hard Turm Park development in Zurich-West. It’s only a 12-minute tram ride from the main station.
- Also earmarked for this complex in 2013 is a 196-room Sheraton property, a partnership between Starwood (starwood.com) and Munich-based Arabella Hospitality (arabella.de).
UPCOMING EVENTS
- The Opera House is a key player in the Zurich Festival’s mix of opera, concerts, dance, drama and fine art, which takes place in July and August (zuercher-festspiele.ch).
- Museum Rietberg is showcasing “The Great Artists of India 1100-1900” until August, along with its permanent collections of Asian, African and American art (stadt-zuerich.ch/kultur/en).
- On August 13, Zurich’s residents celebrate summer evenings to the max at the Street Parade, a leading international house and techno party (streetparade.com).
- The annual outdoor performing arts festival Theaterspektakel takes place from August 18 to September 4 throughout the city and attracts performers from around the world (theaterspektakel.ch).
- The seventh Zurich Film Festival takes place from September 22 to October 2 and provides an insight into the work of upcoming filmmakers from around the globe (zurichfilmfestival.org).
- From October until January, the private collection of the Monaco-based Nahmad family will be exhibited at the Kunsthaus, including works by Picasso, Matisse and Kandinsky (kunsthaus.ch).
- Forthcoming exhibitions to look out for at the Landesmuseum include “Swiss Press Photos”, “WWF: a Biography”, and a retrospective of celebrated watchmaker Abraham-Louis Breguet (nationalmuseum.ch).
