The famous mural by Max Ernst “Petals and the Garden of the Nymph Ancolie”, which for many years adorned the walls of the Dancing Mascotte, a nightclub in Zurich’s Corso Theatre, underwent restoration in the latter part of 2008.

BNP Foundation in Switzerland is proud to have offered its support for this restoration project, which took place in public view at the Tinguely Museum in Basel, and then at the Kunsthaus Zurich, where the work was completed.

The Kunsthaus Zurich decided to bring this monumental painting, considered to be a focal piece in the work of the surrealist painter, out from its collection in order to restore its original beauty and to re-establish its artistic value. Commissioned in 1934 by the Corso Bar, this mural measuring 4.14 x 5.31 m occupied one of the walls of the nightclub until the early 1960s. The painting was bought by the Kunsthaus Zurich in 1965; however, the wear and tear caused by the club environment and the damage incurred when it was cut from the wall and transferred to a new mount had taken a heavy toll on the work.

After displaying the mural for 40 years, the museum transferred it to its archives whilst awaiting restoration. Following intensive conservation work, this impressive painting has finally recaptured its original magical spirit.