Pictet Group
Collection Pictet
The Pictet art collection, founded in 2004, now contains over 1000 Swiss artworks, dating from 1805 to the present day.
Preserving and promoting
Preserving and promoting art and artists is part of the long tradition of patronage that the Pictet partners have cultivated from the Group’s very beginnings in 1805. As in asset management, acquiring, showcasing and managing works of art is not something which can be improvised, but must be approached with professional dedication.
Taking the view that art serves as an important landmark in an ever-changing world, the partners decided to bring existing works together and create a unique art collection dating back to the exact year the bank was founded, and to entrust its care to experts. The Collection Pictet therefore contains works from the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries and reflects the quest for excellence, appetite for innovation and independent spirit expressed in the Group’s values.
In the footsteps of tradition
In building the collection, Pictet was determined to remain close to its Swiss heritage, so the artists included all have a strong cultural link to Switzerland, irrespective of their place of origin. Furthermore, in the spirit of the Pictet Group’s tradition of patronage and philanthropy, the collection maintains close relationships with the artists. It also follows their development in order to provide continued support, especially to the youngest. Since one of the objectives is to build a lasting heritage, the Collection Pictet never sells any of its acquisitions, nor engages in any form of speculation in works of art.
International collaboration
The art collection also loans works to temporary exhibitions and collaborates with many museums and cultural institutions throughout the world. Having been chosen as one of the 100 best corporate art collections, it is described and discussed in two major works: “A Celebration of Corporate Art Programmes Worldwide” (2014) published by the Wapping Arts Trust and “Global Corporate Collections” (2015) published by Deutsche Standards. Finally, the Collection Pictet is a member of the International Association of Corporate Collections of Contemporary Art (IACCCA).
Corporate art collection and site-specific artworks
The works of art in the collection are displayed at Pictet’s Geneva headquarters and in Group offices around the world, where, located in the various spaces, they stimulate a continuous dialogue with the premises they occupy and the people who work there. Pictet also regularly commissions contemporary artists to design original site-specific works
Art focus
The Giacometti, a dynasty of artists
The Giacometti is a very rare example in art history of one generation of artists, allowing the next one to grow and bloom in its own rights. In discussion with Casimiro Di Crescenzo, Italian Art historian and Giacometti expert, Loa Haagen Pictet, Chief Curator of the Collection Pictet, will address questions such as how it is possible for such a remote village of approximately 200 people in the Swiss Alps to become the hometown of so many artists.
Insights into the art market today
In the middle of the current health crisis, the art world and the art market are facing major challenges. Dominique Lévy, Co-Founder of Lévy Gorvy, and Loa Haagen Pictet, Head of Arts – Chief Curator Collection Pictet, discuss the solidity and resilience of the art market and also consider whether there is a chance that the current health crisis will be a stepping stone towards a more transparent art market, or rather the contrary.
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