Van Gogh, Hodler, and a Collector: The Value of Relationships in Basel

A collection is also a portrait of the person who assembled it. Personal preferences, encounters, and choices can leave traces as telling as the artworks themselves. The Kunstmuseum Basel explores this interplay in the exhibition Van Gogh, Hodler, and a Cabriolet: The Collector and Pioneer Gertrud Dübi-Müller, held in the museum’s new building (Neubau) from September 19, 2026, to February 7, 2027. Curated by Géraldine Meyer, the exhibition brings together approximately eighty artworks, photographs, and documents to shed light on a key figure in the history of Swiss collecting.

When Archives Bring a Collection into Focus

The exhibition prompts a question relevant to family collections: how much do we truly know about how they were formed? An invoice can reveal the details of a purchase; an interior photograph might document the presence of a painting within a home; a letter can clarify a relationship with an artist or a gallery. However, every document must be linked to the correct artwork and interpreted within its specific context.

Finding a prominent name in a collection of correspondence is not enough to attribute all the family’s paintings to that artist. Research requires careful cross-referencing: dimensions, subject matter, dates, descriptions, and inventory numbers all help to verify whether a document and an object truly correspond.

Evaluating Collectively, Distinguishing Piece by Piece

For a private collection in Basel, the first essential step is to create a basic inventory. Assign a unique number to each item, and link it to its corresponding photographs, measurements, inscriptions, and related documentation.

Record documented information separately from oral accounts. Even a personal recollection can help guide research, provided it is not presented as an established fact.

The historical coherence of a collection and the commercial value of individual items are related yet distinct concepts. A well-documented provenance can enhance the understanding and presentation of an artwork, though it does not, in itself, guarantee a specific market value. Similarly, the sum of individual estimates does not necessarily equate to the final outcome of a sale of the entire collection.

Preparing an effective inquiry

Before separating documents from paintings, ensure that the connections between them are preserved. If you are considering a sale, it is also helpful to understand the distinctions between an estimate, a reserve price, and a hammer price—as these represent different stages and functions.

Do you have a collection in Basel that you would like to learn more about or reorganize? Contact Colucci Arte to request an appraisal, providing an approximate number of works, their types, and any available documentation. An overview of the collection, supplemented by a few individual item records, will help facilitate an organized initial assessment.

Exhibition information verified on November 6, 2026. Official source and visitor updates. Dates and programs are subject to change by the organizer.