Sometimes places hold the world together too. The Ticino hill Monte Verità near Ascona is a case in point. At the beginning of the 20th century, it attracted national and international writers, intellectuals, life reformers and artists who wanted to fulfill their dream of an alternative life close to nature there.

The short lecture introduces the movement and selected works of art from this group, for example by Hans Arp, Marianne von Werefkin, Hans Richter and many others. Some of them can currently be seen in the exhibition at the Graphische Sammlung ETH Zürich entitled “Fokus Tessin. Künstler:innen in der italienischen Schweiz” (Ticino in the Spotlight: Artists in Italian-Speaking Switzerland).