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Fifty years ago, in 1971, Swiss women gained the right to vote and stand for election at federal level. The same issue, put out to consultation a few years earlier in 1959, was rejected by 66.9% and accepted by just three cantons. While women’s suffrage was achieved in most European countries at the same time, […]

Jean-Claude Hesselbarth, Le Jardin de Lily, 2006, private collection

Are you familiar with contemporary stoicism? This ancient philosophy is back in the news. What’s more, it’s a lifeline in the middle of the storm. Marcus Aurelius (121-180), Roman emperor and author of Thoughts for Myself, is generally regarded as the last Stoic philosopher. Indeed, since the end of Antiquity, there has been no Stoic […]

A practice that became famous in the aristocratic salons of the 18th and 19th centuries was the musical joust, a kind of contest, a challenge of virtuosity between two musicians. Each artist showed off his or her talent as a composer and, above all, as an improviser. Beethoven, being a genius improviser, took part in […]

Discover a selection of books dedicated to sexuality on BCUL’s Riponne site. As the library is one of the only cultural venues still open, this is the perfect opportunity to stock up on books for your evenings out, alone or accompanied (but no more than 5 people!). BCUL offers a selection of recent books entitled […]

Have you ever admired, and secretly envied, a craftsman at work shaping his work in the silence of his workshop? In these troubled times, don’t you long to let go of your computer or smartphone? Let go of the virtual for a few moments and create beautiful objects with your hands. Rediscover the simple pleasure […]