Clear View of the Sea

History of the work

On the western outer wall of the building at Postgasse 64–66, right next to the State Chancellery of the canton of Bern, there is a mural by Manuela Stähli-Legnazzi. It is called 'Freie Sicht aufs Meer' (Clear View of the Sea), dates from 1984 and according to the city's data is painted as a trompe-l'oeil, an illusion meant to deceive the eye. According to Wikidata it is 13 metres high and 2.3 metres wide, a narrow, tall field.

The house has a long history. In 1675 the Fischer postal service moved into numbers 64 and 66, and the lane takes its name from it: the lower part of what had been Hormannsgasse was officially called Postgasse from 1798, though the name only came into common use around 1870. The houses of the former Fischerpost are now listed as a cultural property of national importance; they house the vocational school for the retail trade. Right next door are numbers 68 and 70, the State Chancellery, rebuilt in 1851.

Postgasse has been spared major fires since 1384, so much of its building fabric from before the Baroque period has survived. It is part of the old town's World Heritage site.

According to the artists' lexicon SIKART, Stähli-Legnazzi was born in Bern on 15 September 1942; Wikimedia Commons gives 1943 as her year of birth. Her places of citizenship are Brienz and Locarno. SIKART describes her as a painter, draughtswoman, illustrator and textile artist who has also made art for buildings. The available sources say nothing about the commission for the wall on Postgasse.

Standing in front of the picture, look up: according to Wikidata the painted field rises 13 metres, while being only a little over two metres wide.

Researched and summarised by Bärn Kit. Sources: Kultur Stadt Bern, Kunst im öffentlichen Raum (offene Daten) · SIKART: Manuela Stähli-Legnazzi · Wikidata: Freie Sicht aufs Meer (Q83049798) · Wikimedia Commons: Kategorie Wandmalerei Freie Sicht aufs Meer (Manuela Stähli-Legnazzi 1984) · Wikipedia (de): Postgasse (Bern) · Wikimedia Commons: Wandmalerei Freie Sicht aufs Meer (Manuela Stähli-Legnazzi 1984)