INTRODUCTION     TOWNS AND VILLAGES     TRANSPORT     HOW TO GET THERE     INTRODUCTION     MONTE GENEROSO     MONTE SAN GIORGIO     THE PARK OF THE BREGGIA GORGE     MUGGIO VALLEY     PARK OF THE PENZ HILL     THE PRE MURIN PARK     FORTHCOMING EVENTS     RECURRING EVENTS     SPECIAL EVENTS     TICINO, LAND OF CYCLING     MEETING FACILITIES     INTRODUCTION     MUSEUMS     ART GALLERIES     HISTORICAL BUILDINGS     CINEMA TEATRO CHIASSO     WALKS     MOUNTAIN-BIKE PATHS     THEMATICS PATHS     TREKKING     GUIDED EXCURSIONS Museums Giovanni Züst Cantonal Picture Gallery - Rancate The Chicco d’Oro Coffee Museum - Balerna Ethnographic Museum of the Muggio Valley - Cabbio m.a.x.Museo - Chiasso Pessina House Museum - Ligornetto Vela Museum - Ligornetto Art Museum - Mendrisio Baumgartner Model Railway Gallery - Mendrisio Fossil Museum - Meride Giovanni Züst Cantonal Picture Gallery - Rancate Rural Heritage Museum of the Mendrisiotto - Stabio Giovanni Züst cantonal gallery houses paintings from artists that worked in the Ticino territory from the 17th to the 19th century. As Jean Soldini passionately defines it, this is a museum with “two souls”, as it not only strongly represents local artists but also contains works by internationally illustrious painters. The gallery collection started with the works of art privately owned by Giovanni Züst (b. Basel 1887 - d.Rancate 1976). The group of paintings that still represents the main part of the collection was donated by Züst to the Canton Ticino in 1966 and is by a painter from Tremona: Antonio Rinaldi (1816-1875), by whom the gallery has about one hundred paintings and more than 250 drawings. The gallery strong local connection is so represented by the region of Mendrisiotto artists, mainly by Rinaldi. Meanwhile, other important figures form its more internationally notable character, among them the distinguished Serodine and Petrini. Giovanni Serodine (b. Ascona or Rome, 1594/1600 – d.Rome 1630) is “not only the most eminent of Ticino painters, but also one of the leading artists of Seventeenth-century Italian art”, as Roberto Longhi affirmed. The cantonal gallery has three paintings by Serodine: Ritratto di ragazzo con fogli disegnati (“Portrait of a boy with drawings”), La Vergine dei Mercedari (“The Virgin of Mercedari”) and San Pietro in Carcere (“St Peter in prison”) which is undoubtedly the most precious work of the whole collection. The art gallery, located in a former parish house that was expanded and renovated by architect Tita Carloni, was inaugurated in 1967. It closed in 1988 for exhibit halls refurbishment led by architect Claudio Cavadini and opened again in 1990. The collection continues to enrich thanks to new purchases, donations and loans. The gallery is very active in promoting cultural events through its highly valuable temporary exhibitions curated by renowned personalities of the art world, aimed to bring Ticino painters to wider attention. At the same time, it regularly hosts broader interest exhibits. However, temporary exhibitions do not prevail over the existing works of art housed in the gallery. On the contrary, they aim to enhance the importance and value of the permanent collection, which can always be visited and is frequently renewed with works present in the gallery warehouse or especially loaned from other museums of the canton. Close till March. Temporary exhibitions: 29.03.2009 - 16.08.2009 | PIENI E VUOTI - Interni di case storiche ticinesi fotografate da Roberto Pellegrini 01.05.2009 - 31.12.2011 | Antonio Ciseri Il trasporto di Cristo al sepolcro, 1864-1870 20.09.2009 - 10.01.2010 | Da Fattori a Previati. Una raccolta ritrovata Riccardo Molo, collezionista d'arte tra la Svizzera e l'Italia Where Rancate http://www.ti.ch/zuest   +41 91 646 45 65 decs-pinacoteca.zuest@ti.ch Opening times Tuesday-Sunday 14.00 - 18.00 Prices Adults CHF 8.-- / euro 5.50   Children CHF 6.-- / euro 4.--