Basel Marionetten Theater - Gilbert Mayer Photography - May 2024

The Basel Marionetten Theater (string puppet theatre) is over 80 years old. It is the city's oldest cellar theatre and the first theatre with regular productions for the whole family. Photographer Gilbert Mayer captured around 120 Marionette portraits – most of them created by theatre founder Richard Koelner – in a book called «Charakterköpfe». Mayer used collodion wet plate photography for this, which was introduced around 1850. The photographs and selected puppets are exhibited at Kultur Reverenz at «Zum rothen Schneck» (Reverenzgässlein 2, entrance Oberer Rheinweg) until 20 May 2024. The exhibition is open every day from 1pm to 7pm and admission is free. You can buy the book at various locations (for example at Bider & Tanner) for CHF 45.-. Gabe Bullard talked to Gilbert Mayer about the project.