Valais loses “a great man” in Léonard Gianadda
Published: Sunday, Dec 3rd 2023, 23:10
Updated At: Sunday, Dec 3rd 2023, 23:10
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"Valais has lost a great man", with these words the canton paid tribute to the memory and work of Léonard Gianadda, who passed away on Sunday morning. President of the Swiss Confederation and Minister of Culture Alain Berset also expressed his regret.
"I was deeply touched by the news of Léonard Gianadda's death. As a photographer, patron, collector and art lover, he was deeply committed to promoting culture. My condolences go out to his family and loved ones," wrote Berset on the short messaging service X (formerly Twitter).
And the canton of Valais wrote on X: "Léonard Gianadda has written his way into the heart of the arts." He left an enormous legacy to his city, his canton and his country, particularly with the establishment of the Fondation Gianadda.
"He was a striking personality who shaped Martigny and fascinated us," Mayor Anne-Laure Couchepin told Keystone-SDA. Léonard Gianadda was an "exceptional personality, a visionary, a leader".
The Fondation Pierre Gianadda wrote in the evening: "We are deeply saddened by Léonard's passing. But he leaves us an extraordinary legacy and an incomparable philosophy of life."
And FC Sion football club announced on X: "It is with deep sadness that we have learned of the death of Léonard Gianadda, a dear friend of FC Sion."
"Thank you for being so inspiring"
The artistic director of the Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne (OCL), Renaud Capuçon, wrote: "Farewell, my dear Léonard! As a visionary and generous person, you turned your Gianadda Foundation in Martigny into a place of culture, with painting of course, but also with music, which you loved so much." And further: "Thank you for being so inspiring! I will miss you."
Secretary Laurent Petitgirard and the members and correspondents of the French Academy of Fine Arts also expressed their "great sadness" at the news. Léonard Gianadda had been a foreign associate member since 2001 and a correspondent since 1993.
©Keystone/SDA
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