Constant banging, ringing bells, and clattering sounds, the Museum Tinguely features the works of…read moreSwiss artist Jean Tinguely. Famous for kinetic sculptures, some of them are quite small and many are massive complex installations with many moving parts. With anything that moves, they are constantly breaking down. The museum does everything possible to ensure the longest life of these artworks. They do not run constantly, instead there are pedals or buttons to push that will activate the sculptures. It was a quiet and rainy Tuesday afternoon so the museum was not at all busy. This gave me nearly exclusive access to the artworks and the small theatre. I particularly enjoyed the movie showing the falling and crashing fluorescent lights. You can expect to spend at least two hours here. Don't miss the upside-down biplane hanging from the ceiling or the fountain in the courtyard! [Review 21233 overall - 81 in Switzerland - 198 of 2024.]

This is without a doubt the strangest museum I have ever been to. In Basel we visited Tinguely…read moreFountain. It's a fountain filled with the craziest contraptions that are almost like perpetual motion machines. They're moving iron sculptures that continuously loop through a short range of motion so it looks like they're walking, bobbing, etc. It was intriguing enough to make me want to visit the museum devoted to the works of this artist. If you have a Basel City Pass (which our hotel provided for free) you can use it to get half off of the admission price. I was not prepared for how large the museum was. I was expecting a little place but this museum is enormous! It houses everything from Tinguely's low-tech earlier works (like a moving hammer that keeps smashing a stuffed animal) to huge contraptions. You can even walk inside the machine with a carousel horse attached to it. It was really interesting reading about this artist and how he came to such prominence. With such strange art exhibits it's not a surprise that the layout of this museum is also strange. That's not necessarily a good thing. For some reason the section at the beginning with the majority of printed signs that tell about Tinguely's history isn't air conditioned. There is a roof to provide shade but it still felt like a sauna and was quite uncomfortable. After that you go through some glass doors and the rest of the experience is air conditioned. Why? Also once you wind your way to the innermost part of the museum we were quite surprised to find that you hit a dead end. You have to backtrack all the way back to get out. Really strange design but I guess not surprising. This was a fun visit that definitely gave us something to talk about!

Nice experience!…read more Entry is uncomplicated and lockers are provided for large bags/purses. Bathrooms are easily accessible. There's also a restaurant on the premises, which is really convenient. Great place to visit, especially if you're an art lover.

"Give me a museum and I'll fill it." -Pablo Picasso…read more It took a bit to find the galleries that I wanted but once there, wow. This is the art I love to see - impressionists galore! On a Tuesday morning, it was pretty quiet without schoolkids or large groups. There was nothing distracting me from enjoying the art. The exhibit of existentialist Bernard Buffet works was magnificent with a number of his pieces. Andy Warhol considered Buffet the "last great artist of Paris." Beyond that, Cy Twombly, Edgar Degas. Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot, Paul Cézanne, Vincent Van Gogh (I've never seen "Marguerite Gachet at the Piano" before and the "Self-Portrait with a Japanese Print" was amazing) , Claude Monet, Piet Mondrian, Marc Chagall, Paul Klee, Henri Matisse (paintings *and* sculpture!), Alexej Von Jawlensky's "Self-portrait") and more. What museum would be complete without works by Pablo Picasso and Alexander Calder and Salvador Dali? So much to see, so much to enjoy, so much to appreciate. It is one of the greatest art museums in Switzerland and I had a tremendous visit. Gift shop has lots to purchase but the prices for even the smallest prints are very high. I didn't even get a postcard today. [Review 21230 overall - 78 in Switzerland - 195 of 2024.]

If you love old toys, this is the museum for you. This is a privately owned museum with four full…read morefloors of toys that can be several hundred years old. The old teddy bears, dolls and doll houses were my favorite. The building is beautifully kept, easy to navigate and has a clean restroom on every floor. The staff was very pleasant and entry was free with Basel travel card given to me at the hotel. My wife and I really enjoyed this tour and it was like stepping back in time.

This is a toy museum not to be missed! It's a treasure trove of many genres of toys, stuffed…read moreanimals (mostly bears), and the most amazing are the miniatures and the functional moving toys, such as a full carnival. It's truly amazing. We started at the top and made our way downwards. The top floor is filled with bears, bears, and more bears. Older bears are almost freaky but very cool. It's followed by several floors of miniatures, including an entire village that wrap around several walls. The functional mechanical toys have a button that you can press to activate. Very, very fun to watch. They also had a special exhibit going on about corsets. Not sure why the subject, but very well displayed nonetheless. They don't allow a standalone camera but mobile phone cameras are ok. My photos are only a tiny portion of their collection. Go check them out! This museum is right in old town, very easy to find.

Rich historical museum in the heart of Basel. Wandering around Basel on a cold, rainy November day,…read morethis museum was more an escape than a planned activity. But it was serendipitous because this museum has a lot to offer. First off the setting: a former church, it retains all the earlier beauty of its religious bones. How many museums have vaulted ceilings and archways like this? The museum is focused on Basel's history from Celtic times to today; we found some of the religious objects to be magnificent, as are the amazing tapestries. Explanations of the exhibits are naturally in German, but translation tablets are available at the front desk. Well worth a lengthy visit.

A nice museum in Basel city center, we went on one of their free Sundays which was an added bonus…read more Plan to spend about an hour or so here; they have nice permanent exhibits as well as some temporary/travelling installations. Friendly staff, impressive organization and exhibits.

This museum is in the heart of downtown Basel, Switzerland and was a joy to tour. It's in a…read morebuilding that was built in the 1400s and is absolutely stunning. The tour itself is fascinating and deeply educational. It takes a few hours to see it all while listening to the audio guide. Seeing all the old books and medical implements was fun. How far we've come from bleeding people to cure illnesses. If you're ever in Basel, I highly recommend this tour. So much rich history.

Five stars despite never stepping a foot in this museum. This was on my to do list when I went to…read moreSwitzerland. I was just unable to find the museum. This museum covers the golden years of Pharmacy when the Pharmacist made the medications. I had some great memories when I was kid of watching the Pharmacist compounding drugs. It was probably the main reason why I study Pharmacy and became a Pharmacist. I started Pharmacy school at the tail end of the Compounding era. When I graded Pharmacy school the profession was clinical oriented. I always enjoyed compounding drugs, used to love making Progesterone suppositories. This museum must be amazing with all the Apothecary jars and scales.

my only complaint is that i wish it was bigger! the exhibitions change quite frequently, so i hope…read moreto return a few times.

There is plenty to see at the Tinguely Fountain. Jean Tinguely (1925-1991) was the master of…read morekinetic sculptures. Machinelike structures that move and spin and make noise and eventually, fail. For now, though, this fountain endures. "The Fasnachtsbrunnen was built between 1975 and 1977. It stands on the site of the stage of Basel's old city theatre, which was demolished in 1975 and replaced by today's theatre complex designed by the architects Schwarz & Gutmann." It's not hard to spent an hour here if you wish to appreciate each of the dozen or so moving sculptures as they rise and lower, spin and turn, spit water and go silent. It's an impressive display. A caption nearby points out a description of each piece in German, French and English. [Review 21223 overall - 72 in Switzerland - 188 of 2024.]

Without a doubt the strangest fountain I have ever seen. The Tinguely Fountain was on a list of…read moreinteresting things to see in Basel so we gave it a shot. It's not something you have to pay admission for. You just walk up and look at it and wonder what the heck is going on. The works of art were designed by an artist named Jean Tinguely and I was surprised to learn learn that this was done in the 70's. The works of art in the fountain are really strange looking "perpetual motion" machines. Some look like something you would recognize, such as a mechanical torso that appears to be endlessly running, while others are just completely bizarre contraptions that spit out water in several directions. The fountain is easily accessible via public transport and it intrigued us enough to go visit the Tinguely Museum (which is not close to here).