In over 60 years of a gallery´s existance, countless stories unfold, friendships are formed, fond memories made and turbulent times mastered....let us give you a glimpse into Galerie Ziegler´s history, one story at a time.
Image left to right: Corinne Ziegler (daughter of Renée and Maurice), sitting on the sofa together with DHK aka Heini in his library on 53 bis Quai des Grands Augustins in Paris.
With this image of Renée Ziegler and legendary Art Historian and Art Dealer Daniel Henry Kahnweiler we are starting our series about the history of the Gallery.
It was in Paris, where the idea of the Galerie Ziegler was born. In 1954 Renée had started an internship with Heini at Galerie Louise Leiris (formerly known as Galerie Simon between 1920 - 1939 and as Galerie Kahnweiler between 1907 - 1914) During her first stay at the Gallery, she made the acquaintance of Maurice Ziegler, who was working and drawing at Bernard Zehrfuss’ Paris studio of architecture. The young architect Maurice was involved in an important Parisian project together with Jean Prouvé: the CNIT, the first monumental building situated at the Rondpoint de la Défense.
The CNIT at the
Rondpoint de La Défense under construction
Together the energetic couple explored the rich Parisian art scene. The idea of founding their own gallery in Switzerland, with the art they had discovered and loved in Paris, was born in the cafés of St. Germain des Près where they lived. In December 1959 their idea came to life, when they opened their Gallery in a room of an old lady’s apartment on the second floor on Zeltweg 7 in Zurich.
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