Nature, Sound, and Memory at Kunsthaus Baselland
At Kunsthaus Baselland, a sweeping group exhibition brings together large-scale installations, immersive video works, and sound art by five prominent regional and international creators: Monira Al Qadiri, Joan Jonas, Sigalit Landau, Maya Schweizer, and Hannah Weinberger. Marking the first time these specific works are shown in Switzerland, the presentation serves as an exploration of ecology, climate change, soundscapes, and collective memory.
Visitors navigating the galleries encounter works that treat familiar and hidden environments—ranging from deep oceans and inland lakes to expansive deserts—as interfaces for human behavior and inscribed histories. Through poetic yet direct approaches, the featured artists uncover social realities, prompt mindfulness toward natural spaces, and invite deeper reflection on environmental preservation.
Immersive Encounters with Water, Sound, and Landscape
The exhibition unfolds through diverse mediums, offering visitors distinct sensory encounters across multiple gallery rooms.
French artist Maya Schweizer presents cinematic works that braid personal family history with European Jewish memory and twentieth-century urban spaces, tracing underground tunnels and architectural facades in Munich. An interview detailing her creative process can be explored here.
Meanwhile, Israeli artist Sigalit Landau turns the Dead Sea into an experimental site, utilizing its high salt content to encrust everyday objects like shoes and clothing in glistening crystal. Her video installations highlight both the poetic transformation of matter and the acute ecological vulnerability of the region.
Local audiences can also experience the site-specific sound sculpture Singende Steine by Basel-based artist Hannah Weinberger, which features boulders retrieved from a Swiss riverbed and equipped with an intricate loudspeaker network. Monira Al Qadiri directs attention toward the vast desert landscapes of the Arabian Gulf, contrasting meteorite impacts and audio poetry with glass objects that evoke oil extraction and environmental exploitation. Finally, pioneering US artist Joan Jonas presents drawings, texts, and videos from her Ocean series, combining marine research with mythology to urge greater empathy for marine ecosystems.
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