Les lettres de Robert Walser

Description

An exhibition by the Robert Walser Zentrum Bern The 20 letters that Robert Walser wrote to Therese Breitbach between 1925 and 1932 are among the most valuable holdings of the Robert Walser archives at the Robert Walser Center. The young girl of 17 had appreciated the novel Les enfants Tanner and had made her feelings known to the author. The correspondence that followed was kept unilaterally, as Walser – unlike Breitbach – never kept letters. During the period of correspondence, Robert Walser's life changed radically. His last book, La rose, was published in 1925. Extremely productive years followed during which he refined his mysterious micrographic writing technique and published countless short texts in newspapers and magazines. In 1929, he was admitted to the Waldau psychiatric hospital in Bern. He remarked to Breitbach: "I am both in perfect health and seriously ill." (letter no 850, freely translated from German) Transferred to Herisau against his will in 1933, he abandoned writing. Therese Breitbach married, became a mother, and emigrated to Brazil in 1934, where she died in 1996. She took with her the letters she received from Robert Walser on her journey. The displayed letters are part of the new edition of letters that opens the new Bernese edition of Robert Walser's work, "Berner Ausgabe": Robert Walser: Briefe. Edited by Peter Stocker and Bernhard Echte, with the collaboration of Peter Utz and Thomas Binder. Berlin: Suhrkamp (œuvres; 1–3)

Highlights

• Exhibition of Robert Walser's letters to Therese Breitbach
• Unique correspondence from 1925 to 1932
• Presentation of works as part of the new Bernese edition

General Information

The exhibition is held at the NMB Nouveau Musée de Bienne and highlights a precious correspondence between Robert Walser and Therese Breitbach. It explores the transformations in Walser's life through his letters, while celebrating his literary legacy.

Location

Faubourg du Lac 52, 2502 Biel / Bienne, Switzerland

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