Cherchez le bois, monsieur Tschudi, pour moi!

Removed from the urban centers of art, the Galerie Tschudi in Glarus has pursued a consistent program for years, primarily with high-caliber representatives of Minimal Art, Land Art, and Arte Povera (Carl Andre, Alan Charlton, Richard Long, Mario Merz). Despite its international orientation, the Galerie Tschudi has always played an important role for art in the canton of Glarus. Since the beginning of his work as a gallery owner, Ruedi Tschudi has attached great importance to the development of a gallery program that is connected to Glarus. He has not contented himself with exhibiting works of important international artists in Glarus, but rather has invited artists to create specific new works on-site for the gallery in Glarus. Enthusiastic about the small city in the mountains, the landscape of the canton of Glarus, and the generosity of their host Ruedi Tschudi, many of the gallery’s artists have developed a close connection with Glarus and have repeatedly come here for years to create new works and to be inspired. It is therefore hardly surprising that Ruedi Tschudi and Elsbeth Bisig’s commitment to art has also left traces in the collection of the Glarus Art Society (e.g., the purchase of the sculpture by Ulrich Rückriem on the Landsgemeinde Square or the donation of the sculpture entitled Glärnisch by Carl Andre).

The Kunsthaus Glarus has now invited Ruedi Tschudi to present a selection of works from his private collection. Tschudi will show works from his collection that were created in connection with the visit of an artist to Glarus or with an exhibition in his gallery and therefore also provide insight into the history of the gallery. In the smaller of the two side rooms, a wide range of more personal objects is shown: drawings dedicated to the collector/gallery owner, photographs, and sketches (such as a sketch by Mario Merz, with which he attempts to explain the idea for his next project to the gallery owner and which also provided the title for the exhibition). In the large hall, on the other hand, works with more of a museum character are exhibited, most of which were created in and for Glarus.