Poetic aperitif
2026-01-24 11:00 - 12:00 (Europe/Zurich)
Reading by Caroline Despont, accompanied by Loussona Ground

Caroline Despont, poetess of intimacy and movement, explores landscapes
with a sensual, sober, vibrant language. She writes as one
walks on a ridge: on the edge of the visible and the invisible, between flesh and silence.
Her words are born of listening to the world, to the elements, to beings.
Through readings, performances and encounters with music and voice, she
offers words that invite us to feel, to connect, to open up, to understand.
Based in French-speaking Switzerland, her texts have been published in several collections
and magazines in Europe and Africa.
Her latest collection La Femme qui attendait la pluie (Tarmac Éditions, France) has
received the FETKANN Literary Prize! Maryse Condé 2025 – Poetry.
The text Errances inspires the harp and electronic duo AVELUNE in their album
Errer, a voluptuous, nuanced sonic journey (2024, Claves Records, CH).
She collaborates with Loussona Ground, sound designer & out of genre musician, who
dresses his words in dreamy notes, creating a unique universe in the image of
their respective approaches, on the edge of the visible and the invisible.
Their laboratory found its first setting in February 2025 at the Public Readings.
La Galerie in Geneva, with a reading of previously unpublished extracts from La Femme qui attendait
the rain.

Loussona Ground explores the introspective world through hypnotic textures and layers of sound, creating a dreamlike abundance.
Her performances combine tape, ribbon and semi-modular synthesizers. She combines electronics with music boxes, for which she writes conceptual scores.
Her musical journey began in 1975 with the classical violin, which she quickly brought to life with the discovery of microcontact and effect filters. From her classical days, Loussona Ground has retained an immoderate love of JS Bach, which she takes to new heights in her current sets.
His music is compared with the Ambient and Experimental movements of the 70′-80′.
Loussona Ground has recently given several concerts at Festivals and also likes to do happenings in unexpected places with a minimalist set.
She has collaborated with Swiss artists such as Consor, Sam Frank Blunier and Claudia Renna, and with the Collectif I+, of which she was the violinist.
Among her many projects, she is currently working with Caroline Despont, adding a particular sound dimension to the poet’s words, an invitation to a unique sensory journey, on the edge of the visible and the invisible, in the image of their respective artistic approaches. Their laboratory found its first setting in February 2025 with a reading of previously unpublished extracts from the collection “La Femme qui attendait la pluie” at the Lectures Publiques de La Galerie in Geneva.

Clown show
2026-01-24 20:00 - 21:00
“Par le Boudu”
Solo clown by Bonaventure Gacon
His heart’s a bit sore, he’s had too much to drink… probably the liver, the little beers or maybe the heart itself, his poor ogre’s heart, or maybe it’s that damn rust that inexorably acts on everything, on stoves, hearts and so on… Anyway, you’ve got to get back to work, go and see the good little boys and girls, sip a few drinks, watch the sunsets, have a little gueuletons and then be mean as best you can. You’ve got to live…
For adults and children aged 12 and over

Cold water swimming lessons
2026-01-26 12:30 - 13:30 | On the pier
Would you like to start cold water swimming and join a movement of several hundred people who swim all winter at the Bains? Would you like to enjoy the many benefits of cold water swimming (immune defenses, mental well-being, etc.)?
From September 1, Les Bains will be offering classes every Monday between 12:30 and 1:30 pm in groups of up to 8, to give you all the keys you need to get started.
This course is designed for intermediate and advanced swimmers (we don’t teach you how to swim during the course).
Registration at the Rotonde des Bains, CHF 10 per course.

Poetic aperitif
2026-02-07 11:00 - 12:00
Suzan Samanci reading
Suzan Samancı was born in Diyarbakır, Kurdistan, and published her first poems in the magazine “Sanat Olayı” in 1985.
She was a columnist for the newspapers Demokrasi, Gündem, Özgür Politika and Taraf from 1995 to 2011. She has also written political articles on art, aesthetics, women’s rights and the Kurdish question. Her first book of stories “Eriyip Gidiyor Gece” was published in 1991 under her own steam. She made her real debut with her storybook “Resin Smelled Hêlîn”. Her stories and novels have been published by Turkey’s leading publishing houses. Her stories have been translated into German, Spanish, Italian, Flemish, Swedish, French and Kurdish, and have been included in anthologies in English and Japanese.
As the language of her school and education was Turkish, for a long time she wrote almost exclusively in Turkish, the official language. Since 2015, she has been writing novels and stories in her mother tongue, Kurdish. In 1997, at the Orhan Kemal Literature Prize competition with her storybook “Kıraç Dağlar Kar Tuttu” (Kıraç Dağlar Kar Tuttu: Kıraç Dağlar Kar Tuttu), she was awarded first prize, but after a controversy, she was awarded second prize. After this incident, she decided not to take part in any further competitions.
Suzan Samancı has published books of literary analysis of her stories and novels.
While she is convinced that literature and art will heal and cleanse the polluted world, she also believes that without art and aesthetic awareness, human beings cannot achieve true freedom.

Spa closed February 9 and 10
2026-02-09 - 2026-02-10
Please note that the Baths will be exceptionally closed (and inaccessible) on Monday February 9 and Tuesday February 10 for the installation of the new gates.
It will therefore not be possible to eat, swim or enjoy the winter facilities during these two days!

Clown show: Par le Boudou
2026-02-14 20:00 - 21:00 | Yurt
Solo clown by Bonaventure Gacon
About the show :
His heart’s a bit sore, he’s had too much to drink… probably the liver, the little beers or maybe the heart itself, his poor ogre’s heart, or maybe it’s that damn rust that inexorably acts on everything, on stoves, hearts and so on… Anyway, you’ve got to get back to work, go and see the good little boys and girls, sip a few drinks, watch the sunsets, have a little gueuletons and then be mean as best you can. You’ve got to live…
For adults and children aged 12 and over

Come and sit down
2026-02-19 15:30 - 18:30, 2026-04-28 15:30 - 18:30, 2026-05-12 15:30 - 18:30 | On the pier
Viens t’assis, je t’écoute returns to the Bains des Pâquis for the 2026 season.
Come and sit down with a stranger, talk about your dreams or your gripes, talk about the weather…
Our volunteers will be delighted to offer you a confidential, caring and free listening service!
Looking forward to seeing you again!
Upcoming dates, from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. :

Thursday, April 16
Tuesday, April 28
Tuesday, May 12
Thursday, May 28
Sunday, June 28
Sunday, July 26th
Sunday, August 9th
Sunday, September 27
Sunday, October 11th

https://www.jetecoute.org/geneve

Poetic aperitif
2026-02-21 11:00 - 12:00
Reading by Nathalie Piegay
Nathalie Piégay is a French teacher and literary critic born in Lyon in 1965. A specialist in modern and contemporary French literature, she is also a well-known author of numerous works of fiction.

Poetic aperitif
2026-03-07 11:00 - 12:00
Reading by Pascal Normann
Pascal Nordmann
Capture the information. Grab the thread, then rewind. 2023, 2022, 2021, the years go by with their share of anguish, havoc, disaster and anguish… from one end of the planet to the other. What if all the world’s media and newspapers suddenly began to present this reality, which is losing its meaning, bomb after bomb, in its poetic guise?
In the author’s own words, the Fil info can first and foremost serve as a return to the past. The events mentioned come from our most concrete reality, and each of us still remembers this or that event that made the headlines, before falling back into obscurity just as quickly. Le Fil info responds to this by offering a series of dated, daily prose poems that take these anecdotes and turn them on their head. They offer a way of traveling back in time, questioning what was, at the time, our preoccupying current affairs with humor, shift and irony.
Fil info is a constant poetic experience…
Pascal Nordmann, Swiss writer, visual artist and theatre-maker, will be on hand to read a selection of these texts, published by Les Carnets du Dessert de Lune in June 2025.

Attention Small Sauna out of order
2026-03-10 08:00 - 2026-04-01 09:00
Due to a technical problem, the small sauna is out of service until Tuesday, March 31. Reopening April 1 at 9 a.m. hours.
Limited seating.
Thank you for your understanding.

Exhibition: Des glaciers aux Bains des Pâquis
2026-03-12 17:30 - 19:00 | On the pier
“From the glaciers to the Bains des Pâquis”: the water of Lake Geneva, a precious asset to be protected
As part of Mr. Alfonso Gomez’s year as mayor, the City of Geneva, in partnership with the Maison de la Rivière, is honoring Lake Geneva and its biodiversity with an open-air exhibition. The images taken by photographer Michel Roggo plunge the public into the fascinating world of the lake. Water shapes territories, creates surprising aquatic landscapes and becomes an essential habitat for plants and animals. Lake Geneva is an essential, but often little-known, reservoir of nature in the Geneva region. This exhibition reveals an unseen universe where primordial biological balances are at play.
“Des glaciers aux Bains des Pâquis”, open-air exhibition at the Bains des Pâquis from March 12 to April 15, 2026

Concert: Aï Quartet
2026-03-13 20:00 - 21:30 | Yurt
Agnès sings and saws, Françoise plays accordion, Jean-Elie plays electric guitar and banjo, and Dom plays baritone saxophone. This group is in fact a “side project” of Les Canards des Cropettes, since we’re all part of it! Our repertoire is made up of covers from the last century, from “Nessuno” to “Canzione Arrabiata”, including “Sous aucun prétexte”, “Perfect Day” and “Boulevard of Broken Dreams”. The result is a nostalgic flavour that has been brought up to date, and the joy of revisiting these songs and playing them together.
Concert under the yurt, free admission.

Philo aux Bains: How to respond to the violence of capitalism? with Nicolas Framont
2026-03-15 10:00 - 11:30 | Yurt
How do we respond to the violence of capitalism? And what happens when this violence is no longer merely structural, but provokes irreversible action?
For this Philo aux Bains event, we welcome Nicolas Framont, sociologist and editor-in-chief of Frustration magazine, for a discussion based on two of his books: Parasites and Saint-Luigi: comment répondre à la violence du capitalisme.
In Parasites, Nicolas Framont dismantles a well-honed ideological mechanism: that of designating certain populations as “welfare recipients”, “profiteers” or “burdens” on society. Against this rhetoric, he asks a simple, incisive question: who is really living off whom? Through a sociological and political analysis, he shows how the accusation of parasitism serves to mask the true relations of exploitation and protect the interests of the dominant classes.
With Saint-Luigi, he takes a different approach, more directly rooted in a tragic news item: the murder of Brian Thomson by Luigi Mangione. Based on this event, Nicolas Framont proposes a reflection on political and social violence. What does such an act say about the times in which we live? How can we understand how an individual could commit such an irreparable act in the name of denouncing capitalism? And above all: how can we respond to systemic violence without tipping ourselves into a logic of destruction?
As always at Philo aux Bains, this meeting is intended as a space for collective reflection, taking the time to consider the tensions of our times – and the possible paths towards greater justice.
The meeting takes place as part of the FIFDH.
Under the yurt, free admission.

Poetic aperitif
2026-03-21 11:00 - 12:00
Reading by Patrick Brunet
Actor, director, drama teacher.
Patrick Brunet is also a writer, for plays, short stories and novels.

Clown improv
2026-03-26 19:30 - 21:00
“Four unpredictable clowns, a charismatic master of ceremonies, and a shower of inspiration: this is the explosive alchemy that will set this new improv clown evening in the yurt alight. Get ready for an avalanche of brilliant nonsense and bursts of laughter, punctuated with poetic sparkles. Come and immerse yourself in clowning on Thursday, March 26 at 7:30 p.m. at the Yourte des Bains!”Cie TAKE CARE

Dial-a-poem Switzerland
2026-03-28 - 2026-05-10
To mark the inauguration of the DIAL-A-POEM SWITZERLAND project, MAMCO, in collaboration with the Bains des Pâquis, invites you to a festive evening to discover the exhibition dedicated to the poet John Giorno and his poems by telephone.
In 1968, the American poet John Giorno (1936-2019) launched Dial-A-Poem. He integrated poetry into everyday life: it was broadcast by telephone, and performed rather than written. Almost 60 years after that first version, MAMCO, in collaboration with Giorno Poetry Systems (GPS), is organizing Dial-A-Poem Switzerland, bringing together voices from Switzerland’s different linguistic regions. Poets, writers, thinkers, theater and film personalities, lyricists: all have forged their means of expression from the word, its meaning and its sound.
The project was launched in the open air of the Bains des Pâquis, where a telephone was installed in an old telephone booth. Alongside the jetty, an exhibition on John Giorno is being held. It evokes the literary and artistic currents that ran through his career: the Beat Generation, visual poetry, the underground scene, Pop Art and the technological experimentation of the New York art scene. One of Geneva’s most popular venues thus becomes the stage for these literatures of yesterday and today, and offers as many gifts to those who pick up the phone or call the Dial-A-Poem Switzerland number.
From March 28 to May 10, daily from 8am to 8pm.

Poetic aperitif
2026-03-28 11:00 - 12:00
As part of the Festival Histoire et Cité, Philippe Constantin will give a reading of his text “Le Tarot de la Vie”, accompanied on cello by Francesco Bartoletti.

Philo aux Bains: Science, knowledge and mysteries of the animal body with Virginie Jean
2026-03-28 14:00 - 15:30 | Yurt
What if certain practices escaped the all-too-simple categories of “science” or “superstition”?
What if, between technical gesture and intuition, between accumulated experience and mystery, there were another way of inhabiting the world?
As part of the Festival Histoire et Cité, whose theme for 2026 is “Comme par magie” (As by magic), Philo aux Bains is delighted to welcome Virginie Jean, cow whisperer.
In contrast to a strictly technical vision of animal care, his work is part of an ancient tradition: that of the “rebouteux” and “rebouteuses”, who, through touch, close observation, listening to the body and empirical knowledge often transmitted outside academic frameworks, relieve, heal and rebalance.
Is it folk knowledge? An art of gesture? A form of magic?
What does it mean to “care” when you’re working with living beings, in close proximity to the body?
How can we think about these practices in a world dominated by scientific veterinary medicine? Opposition, complementarity, cohabitation?
This meeting will be an opportunity to explore the tensions – but also the possible dialogues – between rationality and belief, tradition and modernity, the visible and the invisible.
In the course of the discussion, we’ll also question our contemporary relationship with living things: what does caring for animals say about our way of being in the world? What is legitimate knowledge? Who decides what’s science and what’s folklore?
The meeting will take place at the Bains des Pâquis, on the pier, under the yurt. Free admission.

The springs of the imagination always end up forming a lake
2026-03-29 14:00 - 18:00 | On the pier
“The springs of the imagination always end up forming a lake”.
an exhibition, performances and stories to illuminate the mysterious
March 29, 2026 from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm as part of the Festival Histoire et Cité

At the crossroads of the arts, sciences and cultural heritage, this initiative proposes to turn the territory from a mere setting into a space for shared narratives, conveying meaning, belonging and relationships. In this way, the place becomes alive, not through its materiality alone, but through the stories that run through it and the links it generates, enabling everyone to become part of it, to recognize themselves in it and to experience it. To live the territory is also to tell its story.

A proposal fromIIRRM

Since its creation, theInstitut International de Recherche sur la Radio et la Magie (IIRRM) has explored the relationship between magic, art and science, with the ambition of questioning dominant cultural narratives and renewing the ecology of the senses. The project Les sources de l’imaginaire finissent toujours par former un lac (The springs of the imaginary always end up forming a lake) is part of this line: beyond the transmission of a rich intangible heritage, it questions contemporary societal and ecological issues by reaffirming the role of the marvellous in our collective imaginations.

Program of talks and performances, from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm:
Flash training – Guardians of Lake Geneva stories
Maryne Lanaro
Continuous 30′ storytelling on the pier
Supported by the E.S.I.M. association, this flash course is an immersion in the ecology of storytelling. At the crossroads of neuroscience, mythology and life sciences, it explores a simple yet powerful idea: when stories stop circulating, places become impoverished. Through a founding myth of Lake Geneva, collective practices and ritual gestures, participants become guardians of stories – responsible for their transmission, transformation and symbolic power. An intergenerational experience, joyful and engaging, to relearn how to listen to places and tell stories in a different way.

Introduction to the notion of wave epidermis by Jeska Kaola
Paul Courlet
Perfomance, storytelling, music 40′ around 4:00 pm
In this mini-conference, Paul Courlet immerses us in the work of Jeska Kaola, an avant-garde intuitive researcher who evoked the notions of brain waves, synchronization and trance in her 1808 essay Épidermes ondulatoires (Kaola, Jeska, Epidermes ondulatoires Édition Solaris, 1808). Disappeared from the radar and reviled by the scientific community, she was in her time a precursor of therapeutic hypnosis and anticipated the discoveries about brain function made later through brain imaging. She was also close to the famous international trader Jaklos Bariolez Igwan (1755-1816), renowned for his audacity and divinatory powers.

The lake lamp
Diederik Petters
Performance, installation, narrative 25′ continuous in the Yurt
What do luminous objects have to say when we finally give them a voice? In this sound installation, it’s light that plays the leading role: a simple electric bulb on a stand. It flickers. But even more astonishing: it speaks. Could it be that this lamp has emerged from the abyssal depths, from the compact blackness at the bottom of Lake Geneva? A ghostly lamp that seems to carry sunken stories – tales of wrecked ships, missing scenes, lives or voices that have sunk into the lake – but also, the tale of its own invention.

A MOBILE EXHIBITION WITH
MATHILDE TINTURIER, HENRY DELÉTRA HANNA, STEPHANIE PFISTER

AND A LISTENING LOUNGE WITH
ERIC DESJEUX, JEAN-BAPTISTE MOLINA, MARYNE LANARO, EVA ZORNIO, PAUL COURLET, DIEDERIK PETEERS

Workshops
2026-04-01 14:00 - 2026-04-15 18:00
As part of the “Des glaciers aux Bains des Pâquis” exhibition, two workshops are organized by the City of Geneva, with the curator of the Maison de la rivière.
To register, click on the links below:
April 1 at 2pm: https: //www.geneve.ch/agenda/poisson-avril-leman
April 15 at 2 p.m.: https: //www.geneve.ch/agenda/poisson-avril-leman-0

Cancelled : Apéro poétique
2026-04-11 11:00 - 12:00
The apéro poétique with Bessa Myftiu on Saturday April 11 at 11am has been postponed until October.

Expo fête de la danse
2026-04-18 - 2026-05-26
La Fête de la Danse Genève célècelebrates 20 years ! On this occasion, we invite you to step back in time with a photo exhibition at the Bains des Pâquis, from April 18 to May 26, 2026.

Entitled “La danse fait la fête dans les rues de Genève for 20 years”, this retrospective exhibition presents 240 large- and small-format photographs. These powerful images recount the magic of the Geneva Dance Festival, which over the years has sprinkled glitter on people’s everyday lives. Many of these unforgettable moments take place at the Bains des Pâquis!

Street performances, initiations at the Maison des Arts du Grütli, a ball in a courtyard… Every year in May, dance is everywhere, bringing its poetry, its demands and its art of connecting people.

The festival was created by Reso (a Swiss dance umbrella organization). Its aim is to celebrate dance in all its forms. With you and for you!

In Geneva, the festival is a cantonal affair, with 200 activities on both banks of the Rhône. Immerse yourself in this extraordinary adventure by taking a look around. Let yourself be carried away by this great collective celebration that gets Gen ève!

The exhibition will be unveiled with great fanfare, in the presence of the photographers, on the evening of the opening of the 20e Fête de la Danse Genève, on Thursday, May 7. But don’t hesitate to discover the exhibition from April 18.
Photography : Tod auf dem Boot, Cie Vloeistof, Bains des Pâquis, 2015 ©David Bourgeade

Poetic aperitif
2026-04-18 11:00 - 12:00
On Saturday, April 18, as part of the DIAL A POEM project, Julien Maret will be a guest at Les Bains des Pâquis.
As part of the Apéros Poétiques series, the author will read a previously unpublished piece written especially for this event at Les Bains.
Julien Maret lives and works in Geneva.
In the past, he founded and edited the magazines *L’Ablate* and *Coma*. He is a regular contributor to numerous other publications. Two of his books have been published by José Corti: *Rengaine* (2011) and *Ameublement* (2014).

Poetic aperitif
2026-04-25 11:00 - 12:00
reading by Fanny Briand and Philippe Constantin this Saturday at 11am in the yurt.
Born in the autumn of 1980, Fanny first set eyes on the wide open spaces of the Geneva countryside, facing the Jura mountains. Later, she dabbled in art in general at the ESBA, dreaming of travel and the mountains, before training in landscape architecture. It was in an architects’ office that she honed her sensitivity to the world; large scale, small scale, public or private space, rural or urban, she approaches landscape from different angles, always spatial. In recent years, she has returned to what had never really left her: drawing and writing. In line and words, she searches for the micro-cracks where our roots take root.
She co-founded the association “Poésie ambulante”(www.poesieambulante.com) in 2017 and joined the editorial board of Journal des Bains the same year. She currently divides her time between her teaching load at Hepia and creative, personal or collaborative projects.

Clown improv
2026-04-30 19:30 - 20:30
Four clowns, an MC and a good dose of the unexpected: get ready to plunge into a bath of emotions… and laughter!
Join us on Thursday April 30 from 7:30 to 8:30 pm at the Bains des Pâquis for an hour of Clown Improv that’s as crazy as it is poetic. On stage, 4 overexcited clowns and a mistress of ceremonies orchestrate a joyful chaos of improvisation, surprises and laughter.
In the warm atmosphere of the yurt, this last performance of the 2025/2026 season promises an avalanche of clownery, tenderness and suspended moments. Come and tickle your funny bone… and leave with a light spirit!
A unique show that lets you take a break from everyday life and let yourself be carried away by an explosion of joy.

Dance festival
2026-05-07 - 2026-05-10
The Geneva Dance Festival celebrates its 20th edition from May 6 to 10, 2026! In the spotlight, the Bains des Pâquis will host the inaugural evening, a retrospective exhibition, two national shows and many other delights. Welcome!
The inaugural evening will take place on Thursday, May 7. It begins with the opening of the photography exhibition, followed by JINX 103, the show that marked the Fête de la Danse 15 years ago. In this show, Genevan dancers Jozsef Trefeli and Gabor Varga draw on their Hungarian folk heritage to create a rhythmic work combining body percussion and rapid movement.
The evening will continue with a DJ set by Ubuntu Live, for a vibrant and festive Afrobeat atmosphere – ideal for swaying and celebrating together!
On Sunday, May 10, the week ends in style with tai chi and afrodance classes, punctuated by two shows on national tour as part of the Fête de la Danse. With Le Cycle, Compagnie Kane explores the link between growth, decline and renewal in nature. Power guaranteed!
With OUVERTURE, Géraldine Chollet takes her inspiration from medieval mystery theater, blending the sacred and the profane. The audience, forming a circle, becomes an actor in the ritual: performers dance in the center, sometimes joining the procession, then returning to it, creating a collective whirlwind.
This anniversary edition of the Fête de la Danse can be enjoyed in 9 towns, with a fun-filled program featuring 200 activities. Shows, parties, initiations… Whatever your age or style, come and celebrate dance with us!

Poetic aperitif
2026-05-09 11:00 - 12:00
Apéro poétique with Fabienne Radi
Fabienne Radi writes (essays, fiction, poems), produces artist’s editions (books, posters, records) and teaches visual arts at the Geneva University of Art and Design (HEAD). Her early training in geology gave her a love of layers, her brief foray into librarianship sparked an infatuation with filing, and her later art studies transformed her view of everyday objects. Titles, folds, misunderstandings, haircuts, dentists, Shelley Duvall and Paul Newman are recurring motifs in her work. Born in Fribourg, she lives in Geneva and regularly visits the Gruyère region.

Ella Maillart and Lake Geneva exhibition
2026-05-12 - 2026-06-26
Opening May 12, 11am
An exhibition retracing the Lake Geneva Odyssey of Ella Maillart and Hermine de Saussure.
