Drawings tell stories – be it in the form of comics, graphic novels, reportage, cartoons, caricatures or animations. Cartoonmuseum Basel is the only Swiss museum and centre of excellence devoted exclusively to narrative art. By collecting, presenting and mediating, the museum contributes to the debate surrounding this art form and the social issues that it addresses.

The origins of the museum lie in its significant collection of over 12,000 original works by renowned Swiss and international artists. Today, the focus of its activity is on carefully curated exhibitions, either with topical themes or about individual artists.

Every exhibition is multilingual and geared towards an international audience. Cartoonmuseum Basel documents, teaches, promotes and scrutinises the art of narrative drawing. Here, everything revolves around drawing as an art form, as well as the creative process of producing images and stories. The exhibitions make different drawing styles, traditions and artistic positions accessible. The respective works are also embedded in a historical or social context. In terms of content, the exhibitions have very broad range: from traditional to contemporary works and from the themed exhibition to the presentation of a single artist’s oeuvre. Related genres, such as free drawing, illustration or animation, are also integrated into the exhibitions. In this way, Cartoonmuseum Basel also appeals to the younger generation of artists and a young audience.

The founder and benefactor of Cartoonmuseum Basel was the Basel patron Dieter Burckhardt (1914–1991), who wanted to make his private collection of caricatures and cartoons accessible to a wider audience. In 1979, he set up a foundation called Stiftung Sammlung Karikaturen & Cartoons, which is still managed by the Christoph Merian Foundation to this day. From the very start, both the collection and the museum have operated without any public funding. Already in 1980, the first exhibition opened: at St. Alban-Vorstadt 9.

In 1991, Stiftung Sammlung Karikaturen & Cartoons succeeded in acquiring an old townhouse at St. Alban-Vorstadt 28. This was subsequently renovated by the renowned Basel architects Herzog & de Meuron, who also extended it by adding a new building. Thus, the exhibition space was significantly enlarged, and there was more room for the library and shop. The new Karikatur & Cartoon Museum Basel opened in May 1996.

In 2009, the Karikatur & Cartoon Museum was renamed Cartoonmuseum Basel. It positions itself as the only Swiss museum devoted exclusively to narrative art. From December 2023, in a revitalised corporate design, the suffix ‘Centre of Narrative Art’ was added to the name, so as to clarify the mission and aspirations of Cartoonmuseum Basel.

Cartoonmuseum Basel comprises an originally late-Gothic building on a historical stretch of street and a new building behind it, by Herzog & de Meuron. Visitors enter the museum through the old building, which accommodates the foyer, museum shop, library, studio and some of the exhibition rooms. A bright atrium leads to the rear building, with three more exhibition rooms.

Our shop’s hallmark is its huge permanent selection of postcards. In addition, we offer an exquisite range of postcards and albums pertaining to the current exhibition. Alongside the books, the admission vouchers available here are recommended as a gift idea.

We currently have no vacancy, thank you for your understanding.

• 2018 (Download PDF)
• 2019 (Download PDF)
• 2020 (Download PDF)
• 2021 (Download PDF)
• 2022 (Download PDF)
• 2023 (Download PDF) (interactive)