Ascona

In 1913, choreographer Rudolf von Laban established a Summer School for the Arts on Monte Verita above Ascona. Students practised barefoot, often nude, in the open air, developing what became known as the 'New Dance' (Ausdruckstanz). Mary Wigman, Sophie Taeuber, Katja Wulff, and Suzanne Perrottet trained under Laban. In the summer of 1917, the dance drama 'Sang an die Sonne' ('Song to the Sun') was performed at the conclusion of a large vegetarian and pacifist congress -- a landmark event in the birth of modern European dance. Monte Verita was founded in autumn 1900 by five idealists including Henri Oedenkoven and Ida Hofmann, who renamed the hill from Monescia to Monte Verita ('Mountain of Truth').

Marianne Werefkin (1860-1938), Russian-born Expressionist painter and key figure of the Blaue Reiter (Blue Rider) movement, arrived in Ticino in 1918 fleeing World War I. In 1922, she and other resident artists donated works to create a Municipal Museum -- the foundation of today's Museo Comunale d'Arte Moderna, housed in a 16th-century palazzo on Via Borgo. In 1924, Werefkin founded the artists' group 'Der Grosse Baer' (The Great Bear / L'Orsa Maggiore), named after the constellation. The Marianne Werefkin Foundation now holds approximately 90 paintings, 170 sketchbooks, and hundreds of drawings. Fellow artists Alexej Jawlensky, Paul Klee, Arthur Segal, and Cuno Amiet also contributed works.

The Isole di Brissago are two islands in the Swiss part of Lake Maggiore near Ascona. In 1885, Russian-born Baroness Antoinette de Saint Leger and her husband Richard Fleming purchased the islands, then called 'Isole dei conigli' (Rabbit Islands). The Baroness transformed San Pancrazio into a botanical garden and cultural centre, hosting painters Daniele Ranzoni, Filippo Franzoni, and Giovanni Segantini, and composer Ruggero Leoncavallo between 1886 and 1914. Fleming departed in 1897; the Baroness continued alone. In 1949, a consortium including the Canton of Ticino purchased the islands. On 2 April 1950, the Parco Botanico del Canton Ticino opened to the public. Today the garden hosts approximately 2,000 plant species from Mediterranean and subtropical regions across five continents, receiving over 90,000 visitors annually.

The Collegio Papio was founded by the testamentary will of Bartolomeo Papio (Ascona, 1526-Rome, 1580), a local man who made his fortune in Rome serving the Orsini family. Cardinal Carlo Borromeo championed the project as a bulwark against the Reformation. The college was built in 1585 in Renaissance style, designed by architect Tibaldo Pellegrino di Valsolda. The large quadrangular cloister rests on 28 Tuscan-style columns of red granite quarried from Baveno. Under the arcades: 27 bas-reliefs in stucco, marble, and granite depicting coats of arms of protectors including Pope Gregory XIII and Carlo Borromeo. Four medieval castles defended Ascona -- San Michele, San Materno, dei Grillioni, and dei Carcani -- connected, according to legend, by underground passages.

The Chiesa dei Santi Pietro e Paolo (Church of Saints Peter and Paul), documented as a parish since 1264, is the heart of the Borgo with its tall rectangular stone campanile. Inside the church hang three important canvases by Giovanni Serodine (Ascona 1600 - Rome 1630), a Swiss-Italian Baroque painter influenced by Caravaggio, including the 'Road to Emmaus' and the 'Sons of Zebedee.' The paintings were donated to the parish in 1633 by the painter's father and brother. Serodine died in Rome at only 30 years of age, leaving behind a small but powerful body of work that art historians consider among the finest Caravaggesque painting produced outside Italy.

JazzAscona was founded in 1975 in Lugano as 'Festa New Orleans' by Hannes Anrig, and relocated to Ascona in 1985. It is devoted to historical styles of jazz, particularly New Orleans jazz -- the only festival of its kind in Europe. In 2015, the festival reached an official agreement with the City of New Orleans; it is the only event outside the USA officially supported by New Orleans. Mayor LaToya Cantrell traveled to Ascona for a formal sister city agreement. The 10-day festival (late June to early July) features over 200 concerts, 55 bands, and late-night jam sessions with Creole cuisine, all offered free of charge along the Piazza Giuseppe Motta -- Ticino's most celebrated waterfront, lined with palm trees and cafe terraces.

In autumn 1900, five idealists settled on the hill of Monescia above Ascona and renamed it Monte Verita. The founders -- Henri Oedenkoven, Ida Hofmann, Karl Graeser, Gustav (Gusto) Graeser, and Lotte Hattemer -- established a cooperative based on vegetarianism, nudism, theosophy, and women's emancipation. In 1926, Baron Eduard von der Heydt purchased the complex and commissioned architect Emil Fahrenkamp to build a Bauhaus-style hotel (1927-1929), displaying modern and non-European art. Bauhaus luminaries Walter Gropius, Josef Albers, and Herbert Bayer visited. Hermann Hesse visited repeatedly; Isadora Duncan danced on the hillside. After von der Heydt's death in 1964, the property passed to the Canton of Ticino. Today Casa Anatta houses a history museum (since 1981) and the Bauhaus hotel hosts international conferences.

Until the early 20th century, Ascona was fundamentally a fishing village (villaggio di pescatori) on the northern shore of Lake Maggiore, at 196 metres above sea level -- Switzerland's lowest-lying town. A fortified settlement was first documented in 1186 as 'castrum quod dicitur Sconae.' Four medieval castles defended the town: San Michele, San Materno, dei Grillioni, and dei Carcani -- connected, according to legend, by underground passages. The town formed a village cooperative together with Ronco and Castelletto. Ascona sits on the delta of the Maggia river, a wide alluvial plain. The Mediterranean microclimate brings over 2,300 hours of sunshine per year, allowing palm trees, camellias, and subtropical vegetation to thrive.