Hans Bächtold
Born in 1923.
Died in 1996.
Swiss post-war figuration · landscape, portraiture, still life and interior in Schaffhausen.
Hans Bächtold (1923–1996) was a Swiss painter associated with the Schaffhausen art scene in the second half of the twentieth century. His figurative work encompasses landscape, portraiture, still life and interior scenes. SIK-ISEA also records mural projects and works in plaster and clay.
The Kunstverein Schaffhausen collection documents several stages of his production. It holds “Stilleben mit Chiantiflasche am Fenster”, an oil on canvas measuring 73 × 60 cm that entered the collection in 1956, together with “Spiegel II” of 1967 and “Spiegel I” of 1968, both oils on canvas measuring 81 × 100 cm. Everyday objects, windows and mirrors recur throughout this group.
His later work continues the exploration of interiors and still life. “Tisch mit Stilleben”, painted in 1984, joined the collection in 1985. “Blütenzweig und rote Schüssel”, dated 1990, was acquired in 1998.
Acquisition dates must be distinguished from the dates of the paintings themselves: the works trace a development from the 1950s to the end of his career.
His place in regional art history is recalled in the documentation for “Kunst vereint”, the Kunstverein’s 175th-anniversary exhibition at Museum zu Allerheiligen in 2023. The period beginning around 1950 is associated with Max Gubler, Carl Roesch, Albert Schachenmann and Hans Bächtold, among others. The publication edited by Julian Denzler and Andreas Rüfenacht provides a historical context for this generation and its institutional environment.
The Schaffhausen City Archives preserve photographic portraits of Bächtold made around 1993, including several in his studio. These archival records, the Kunstverein paintings and the entries in the index to Schaffhauser Kantonsgeschichte provide complementary foundations for studying the painter.
His landscapes also appear in Auktionshaus Zofingen catalogues. The offerings of “Frühlingslandschaft” in 2024 and “Flusslandschaft” in 2025 extend the documentation of his oeuvre. A catalogue entry establishes an auction appearance; without a published result, it does not establish a completed sale.
