Zurich

Swiss Re Next opened in autumn 2017. Part of Campus Mythenquai on the shores of Lake Zürich, the building’s undulated glass façade takes up the movement of the waves. The architecture blends in with the urban and natural environment alike yet is distinct and unique. Inside, the artworks on view convey a similarly striking balance of openness and individuality.

Throughout the building, you will find a selection of works from artists from all over the world like Yto Barrada, Elad Lassry, Scott Myles, or Carissa Rodriguez. We specifically commissioned ten artists to realize extensive projects for the building in close collaboration with the architects.

To just name a few, Martin Boyce created a reception desk from a single piece of marble, and Heimo Zobernig developed a bright yet enigmatic colour concept for selected walls. Willem de Rooij contributed subtle colour-graded curtains, and Kerstin Brätsch designed two futuristic stained-glass windows and a large-scale sgraffito. All of these works blur the boundaries of art and architecture and challenge our expectations. Together they work towards creating a diverse, inspiring, and creative office environment.

The venerable Altbau is the oldest building on Swiss Re’s Campus Mythenquai in Zürich. Flanked by the modernist Klubhaus and the 21st-century architecture of Swiss Re Next alike, the traditional stone building dates to the beginning of the 20th century.

For the most recent renovation of the Altbau in 2018, we revised our already existing art concept. Amongst others, Fabrice Gygi's striking large-scale watercolours, Latifa Echakhch's innovative combination of materials and media or Nicolas Party's colourful, characteristic landscape paintings carry on the spirit of the collection. Located in front of the boardroom, they complement the existing artworks by artists like Carl Andre, Ólafur Elíasson, Tatsuo Miyajima or Shirana Shahbazi.

Why did we revise our art concept? Because a collection should develop and grow – and art is made to be seen. Challenging and inspiring, the art at our Altbau continues to offer new and unexpected perspectives.

Renovating a building offers a unique chance to interlink art and architecture profoundly. When we decided to modernize our 1957-built Klubhaus in Zürich, which hosts a cafeteria and a restaurant, we invited artists Jorge Pardo, Tobias Rehberger, and Pae White to develop artworks specifically for the site. Each of them created a highly distinct pattern for the sound-absorbing rhomboid tiles used to cover the walls throughout the inner core of the building. Additionally, all three collaborated to create two light installations.

Pardo, Rehberger, and White worked closely with the architects to elaborate a distinct and tailor-made concept for each floor. Together, they created an inspiring, attractive, and inviting atmosphere. The result is not only an expression of their individual artistic voices but ultimately also very practical. Above all, the Klubhaus, which reopened in 2020, is a restaurant: a place not only for lunch but also for relaxation or the occasional informal business meeting; a place for collegiality – amongst employees and participating artists alike.

The Swiss Re Centre for Global Dialogue is our premier conference facility. Located in Rüschlikon on the slopes above Lake Zürich, the former Villa Bodmer offers an exclusive retreat for our global guests to come together in person. Next to the venerable Villa, the new building features a large conference room and a hotel. Along with the beautiful park, the ensemble as a whole creates an atmosphere of concentration and inspiration alike.

Equally, the artworks on view invite visitors to contemplate as much as they spark new and often surprising ideas. Inside Villa Bodmer, Günther Förg's careful and well-balanced colour concept opens up a dialogue with the 100-year-old architecture. In the new building, Gilbert Bretterbauer's colourful carpets bring an air of playfulness to the lucid modernist architecture. And in the garden, commissioned projects like Sol LeWitt's Sloping Progression, a series of concrete piles, or the Concrete Landscapes by seminal Zürich artist duo Fischli/Weiss intertwine nature and culture in fresh ways.

Factsheet Garden Lounge