Four Scenes from the Story of the Apostle Peter

History of the work

On the north side of the Petruskirche at Brunnadernstrasse 40, an open porch links the parish hall with the bell tower. According to the building inventory it is decorated along its whole length with reliefs on the story of the apostle Peter. Gustave Piguet made the four scenes in 1951; for his reliefs at the church the inventory names Laufen limestone and Paris shell limestone.

The church was built from 1947 to 1949 to plans by the architect Max Böhm for the Reformed parish association. The concrete building with plastered panels follows early Christian hall churches in its form and design; according to Wikipedia the slender tower is 35 metres high and holds five bells. Piguet also made the relief with the Old and New Testament and the Baptism of Christ and, inside, the pulpit in the form of an early Christian ambo and the communion table, both with reliefs and inscriptions. The parish hall has an oil painting 'The Calling of Peter' by Fritz Pauli (1950). According to the building inventory, the church and its furnishings are well preserved in their original state.

Gustave Piguet was born in Interlaken on 19 February 1909 and died in 1976. SIKART describes him briefly as a sculptor of art on buildings and in public space. According to a biography on the art-market site AskArt, he trained in Bern as a wood and stone sculptor, then went to Paris and took part in the World Exhibition of 1937. When war broke out in 1939 he returned to Bern, where he received many public commissions, among them for the town hall and the Kunsthalle.

Walking along the porch, you have the reliefs beside you along its whole length. Above the porch, the high wall of the nave opens in four round windows.

Researched and summarised by Bärn Kit. Sources: Kultur Stadt Bern, Kunst im öffentlichen Raum (offene Daten) · Bauinventar Stadt Bern: Brunnadernstrasse 40 (PDF) · Wikipedia (de): Petruskirche (Bern) · SIKART: Gustave Piguet · AskArt: Gustave Piguet, Biografie · Wikimedia Commons: Fassade Petruskirche (Kalksteinrelief, Gustave Piguet 1951)