The multimedia presentation Art nouveau & Society is the result of the triennial project, which was carried out by the international Réseau Art Nouveau Network within the framework of the EU program Culture 2000. It is a short and concise presentation of the social and economic situation in Europe at the turn of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century, which created favourable conditions for the development of the pan European movement for the modernisation of art – art nouveau.
Art nouveau came into being in 1893 when Victor Horta built a house for the professor Edmond Tassel, while the name was given to the movement by Siegfried Bing, an art dealer who opened, in Paris in 1895, the art shop with the name L' Art nouveau. There he organized exhibitions and sales shows of painting, sculpture and particularly decorative arts, which were never before exhibited in art galleries (for ex. the furniture by Van de Velde, glass products by Louis Comfort Tiffany...).
Art nouveau spread quickly throughout Europe thanks to the photo-illustrated art magazines as well as international exhibitions. The name differed according to the country; it was called Jugendstil in Germany, Modernisme in Catalonia, Liberty or Style floreale in Italy, Secession in Vienna or Prague and other countries of Austro Hungarian empire. The Art nouveau movement developed more quickly in countries or regions which claimed greater cultural autonomy (such as Catalonia, non German nations of Austro Hungarian monarchy, Finland etc.) or those experiencing economic prosperity and distancing themselves from tastes dictated by capitals (Glasgow or Nancy). It was more often dominant in new areas constructed to cope with increasing urbanisation at the end of the 19th century (Riga or Barcelona). The Art Nouveau fashion started to diminish from 1906, disappearing almost completely during the First World War.
The presentation Art Nouveau & Society is aimed at the general public, giving it the opportunity to experience art nouveau and society hundred years ago, which was marked by the second industrial revolution, new scientific discoveries, technological inventions and new bourgeoisie, which became the most important patron and consumer of the new art.
Art Nouveau & Society presentation is a result of a collaboration between the curator David Aasen Sandved (Jugendstilenteret, Alesund), the production company Instamatic under the direction of Jack van Domburg and Kai Fridström, and 16 of the Réseau Art Nouveau Network partners: Alesund, Bad Nauheim, Barcelona, Brussels, Glasgow, Havana, Helsinki, La Chaux-de-Fonds, Łódź, Ljubljana, Nancy, Provincia di Varese, Regione Lombardia, Reus, Riga and Terrassa.
The production is available in 11 languages (English, French, German, Spanish, Catalan, Italian, Netherlands, Norwegian, Finnish, Polish, Slovenian).
.: Presentation web page (www.artnouveau-net.eu) :.
The international exhibition is accompanied by the interactive presentation Art and Society in Slovenia around 1900 and the virtual art gallery of Rihard Jakopič, the first art gallery in Slovenia, which was built in 1909 and pulled down in 1960.
The interactive presentation Art and Society in Slovenia around 1900 was prepared for the exhibition Slovene impressionists and their time and displays the period of great social and political upheaval, of rapid economic and technological growth and dynamic cultural life at the turn of the 19th century in Slovenia. It was created in the Urban planning Institute of the Republic of Slovenia and is the result of the many years' research of urban and architectural history of the period. It is aimed at the general public, and is primarily focused on the art nouveau movement, which won recognition in Slovenia, especially in the architecture and the applied arts and appeared almost simultaneously with the impressionist movement in painting.
The presentation consists of the timeline (1867-1920), which shows the key milestones in the social, political, economic and cultural life of Slovenes, within the context of the European situation at the turn of the 19th century and 4 themes, talking about social and political, economic and technological, urban and architectural development in Slovenia, around 1900.
It is accompanied by a short 3D animation Ursula and the Dragon, aimed at attracting the interest of children. The story takes place on the Dragon Bridge, the art nouveau symbol of Ljubljana's architecture and recreates the old local legend of Ursula and the Triton, which represents the literary symbol of Ljubljana, thanks to the poem by France Prešeren.
was created by Srečo Dragan in collaboration with the Union of Slovene Fine Arts Associations and the Ljubljana Fine Artists Society for the 90th anniversary of the art gallery in 1989. The presentation was created as tribute to the artist, who contributed substantialy to the artistic life at the turn of the 19th century in Ljubljana, building the first art gallery and opening the first school of painting in Slovenia. He also played an important role in the cultural life of Slovenes in the first half of the 20th century as a kind of spiritual leader of artists within the Slovene artistic society.
.: The virtual gallery of Rihard Jakopič web page (black.fri.uni-lj.si/jakopic) :.
Exhibition Art Nouveau & Society in the National Gallery of Slovenia
Author
Breda Mihelič
Selection of graphic material
Breda Mihelič, Biba Tominc
Preparation and design
Biba Tominc
Exhibition set-up
Meta Hočevar
Organisation of multimedia presentation
Igor Bizjak, Luka Hribar
Project coordination
Marja Lorenčak
Multimedia presentation Art Nouveau & Society
Author
David Aasen Sandved, Jugenstilenteret, Alesund, Norway
Developed and directed by
Jack van Domburg, Kai Fridstrom, INSTAMATIC, No
Produced by
Réseau Art Nouveau Network, INSTAMATIC, No
Selection and preparation of material
Partners of the Réseau Art Nouveau Network: Alesund, Bad Nauheim, Barcelona, Brussels, Glasgow, Havana, Helsinki, La Chaux-de-Fonds, Łódź, Ljubljana, Nancy, Provincia di Varese, Regione Lombardia, Reus, Riga and Terrassa
Interactive presentation Art and Society in Slovenia around 1900
Author
Breda Mihelič
Produced by
Urbanistični inštitut RS
Ljubljana 2008
Virtual Gallery Rihard Jakopič
Author
Srečo Dragan
Produced by
Zveza društev slovenskih likovnih umetnikov
Društvo likovnih umetnikov Ljubljana
Art Nouveau in Ljubljana by the students of the School of Design and Photography
Authors
Srednja šola za oblikovanje in fotografijo (Natalija Bukovec, Urška Cesar, Anja Doblanovič Šešek, Nejc Fon, Karin Hrga, Indira Huzejrović, Ajša Kljunić, Špela Kos, Kaja Pogačar, Žiga Ponikvar, Rok Rožman, Maja Žganjer, Andrej Zupančič)
Mentors
Prof. Janko Testen, prof. Jože Bitenc, prof. Marko Gorenc
5 November 2008–18 January 2009
National Gallery of Slovenia
Prešernova 24
1000 Ljubljana