ohh that tinguely feeling

last week, we went to basel for the cornell alumni club thanksgiving feast. on saturday, before our annual meeting and dinner, we had a guided tour through the tinguely museum. it was awesome.

jean tinguely lived in basel and was a leading participant in the parisian avant-garde movement of the 1950s-60s. he is most famous for his installation, kinetic works like the one pictured below. the museum was particularly interesting for its design. it was meant to resemble a factory space, similar to the workshop where tinguely built his pieces.


he spent much of his time scouring flea markets and junk yards for inspiration and material. one of the most striking series was one created from the wreckage of a fire-consumed barn. morbid at times, it incorporated animal skulls and charred farm equipment. just goes to show you, one man's junk...might be a world renown artist's treasure and admired in a famous museum one day.

he has some mechanical fountains that can be seen in and around basel. and he is also responsible for the lake-side statue "eureka" in zurich, near the china garten (vintage pic below).



jean tinguely is considered a swiss hero and graces the front of the 10 franc note. and now here's a real knee-slapper: the swiss claim that they portrayed tinguely with his glasses on his forehead so the austrians wouldn't mistake 10 for 1000...!

more to come on swiss money. probably some of the coolest currency i have seen. just another reason not to join the european union and adopt the euro.