Curt Burgauer

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Curt Leopold Burgauer (born August 21, 1908 in St. Gallen ; † October 9, 2002 in Zurich ) was a Swiss textile merchant and art collector of contemporary art, as well as an author and publisher.

family

Part of the castle Auer family emigrated in 1773 by the then front Austrian Burgau first to Hohenems and then on to St. Gallen. In addition to being a merchant, from 1860 the descendants were mainly active in the manufacture of embroidery, white goods and curtains. From 1863 Jews were granted the right to settle in St. Gallen. Her progenitor is Adolf Burgauer (1837–1904) , who was still born in Hohenems .

Curt's parents were Theodor (son of Adolf, 1867–1941) and Elsa Dina, née Stern (1879), who came from Bad Cannstatt and who spent her old age in Lengnau in the canton of Aargau . According to genealogical records, Curt had no siblings. In 1942 he married Erna Guggenheim (1907–1995) from Zurich.

At the beginning of the 20th century, St. Gallen was characterized by a flourishing economy and pluralistic culture. The Burgauer family belonged to the small Jewish community that had formed the Israelitische Kultusgemeinde in 1863 with 22 members. Curt grew up accordingly wealthy and rich in artistic influences.

Life

Nothing is known about his school and professional training. He worked first in St. Gallen, later in Küsnacht in the trade of his ancestors. In addition, he ran a dedicated contemporary art collection from the 1940s. At that time, he was already considered a “leading promoter” in Zurich. He was particularly committed to up-and-coming young Swiss artists. Together with well-known cultural scholars and dealers, he shaped new tendencies in Zurich to create a “climate of openness”. The Bel Etage Club played a special role , where exhibitions of contemporary art were regularly on view.

In addition to his patronage was Curt Burgauer many with his wife Erna founder of art and collections of renowned institutions such as the Kunstmuseum St. Gallen , the Kunstmuseum Winterthur and in particular the Kunsthaus Zurich . The museum in the warehouse in St. Gallen keeps the objects of the Foundation for Swiss Naive Art and Art Brut , which was co-founded by the collector couple in 1988.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Adolf Burgauer in: Jewish Family Research in Vorarlberg and Tyrol , Jüdisches Museum Hohenems
  2. ↑ Marcel Mayer: Burgauer. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland . April 10, 2003 , accessed July 10, 2019 .
  3. ↑ a b Felix Baumann: Patrons in the most beautiful sense in: NZZ , October 15, 2002
  4. ^ The museum in the warehouse , website of the museum.
personal data
SURNAME Burgauer, Curt
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Burgauer, Curt Leopold (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swiss textile merchant and art collector of contemporary art as well as author and publisher
DATE OF BIRTH August 21, 1908
PLACE OF BIRTH St. Gallen
DATE OF DEATH October 9, 2002
Place of death Zurich