The Art pavillion in Zagreb ( hr, Umjetnički paviljon u Zagrebu) is an art gallery in

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Slov ...

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

. The pavilion is located on the Lenuci Horseshoe,

Lower town Lower Town (also spelled "Lowertown" (french: la Basse-Ville) is a neighbourhood in Rideau-Vanier Ward in central Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, to the east of downtown. It is the oldest part of the city. It is bounded by Rideau Street to the south, ...

area of the city, south of

Nikola Šubić Zrinski Square Nikola Šubić Zrinski Square ( hr, Trg Nikole Šubića Zrinskog, popularly referred to as Zrinjevac) is a square and park in Donji Grad, the central part of Zagreb, the capital of Croatia. It is located near the central Ban Jelačić Square, h ...

, on the northern side of the King Tomislav Square which flanks the

Zagreb Central Station Zagreb Glavni kolodvor ( Croatian for ''Zagreb main station'') is the main railway station in Zagreb, Croatia. Located south of the city's main square, it is the largest station in Croatia and the main hub of the Croatian Railways network. Histo ...

. Established in 1898, it is the oldest gallery in the

Southeast Europe Southeast Europe or Southeastern Europe (SEE) is a geographical subregion of Europe, consisting primarily of the Balkans. Sovereign states and territories that are included in the region are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia (a ...

and the only purpose-built gallery in Zagreb designed specifically to accommodate large scale exhibitions.

History

The idea of creating the gallery was first put forward by Croatian painter

Vlaho Bukovac Vlaho Bukovac (french: Blaise Bukovac; it, Biagio Faggioni; 4 July 1855 – 23 April 1922) was a Croatian painter and academic. His life and work were eclectic, for the artist pursued his career in a variety of locales and his style changed gre ...

in the spring of 1895. In May 1896 a Millennium Exhibition was to be held in

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

, celebrating 1,000 years of Hungarian statehood, and artists from what was then Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia were invited to attend. Urged by Bukovac, Croatian artists decided to present their works in a purpose-built Pavilion, constructed around a

prefabricated Prefabrication is the practice of assembling components of a structure in a factory or other manufacturing site, and transporting complete assemblies or sub-assemblies to the construction site where the structure is to be located. The term ...

iron skeleton so that it could easily be shipped to Zagreb after the exhibition. The Budapest Pavilion was designed by Hungarian architects Flóris Korb and

Kálmán Giergl Kálmán Giergl (born as Koloman Giergl, 29 June 1863 in Pest, Hungary, Habsburg Empire – 10 September 1954 in Verőce, Hungary), was a Hungarian-German architect and a significant figure in the Austro-Hungarian eclectic architectural style. ...

and was constructed by the Danubius building company. After the exhibition had ended, the building's skeleton was transported to Zagreb and Austrian architects

Fellner & Helmer Fellner & Helmer was an architecture studio founded in 1873 by Austrian architects Ferdinand Fellner and Hermann Helmer. They designed over 200 buildings (mainly opera houses and apartment buildings) across Europe in the late 19th century and ear ...

(who were at the time active in Zagreb, and had earlier designed the Croatian National Theatre building) were hired to design a new version of the building based on the iron skeleton, while the

Hönigsberg & Deutsch Hönigsberg & Deutsch was an architecture studio and construction company formed in Zagreb by architects Leo Hönigsberg and Julio Deutsch, active between 1889 and 1911. They produced over 90 known works in the Lower Town area of Zagreb, built du ...

building company was contracted to perform the actual construction. The building's exterior was decorated with sculptures in the

academic art Academic art, or academicism or academism, is a style of painting and sculpture produced under the influence of European academies of art. Specifically, academic art is the art and artists influenced by the standards of the French Académie ...

style — the eastern facade displays busts of three

Italian Renaissance The Italian Renaissance ( it, Rinascimento ) was a period in Italian history covering the 15th and 16th centuries. The period is known for the initial development of the broader Renaissance culture that spread across Europe and marked the trans ...

painters —

Giulio Clovio Giorgio Giulio Clovio or Juraj Julije Klović (1498 – 5 January 1578) was an illuminator, miniaturist, and painter born in the Kingdom of Croatia, who was mostly active in Renaissance Italy. He is considered the greatest illuminator of the It ...

(Julije Klović),

Andrea Schiavone Andrea Meldolla ( hr, Andrija Medulić), also known as Andrea Schiavone or Andrea Lo Schiavone (c. 1510/15–1563) was an Italian Renaissance painter and etcher, born in present-day Croatia, active mainly in the city of Venice. His style co ...

(Andrija Medulić) and

Vittore Carpaccio Vittore Carpaccio ( UK: /kɑːrˈpætʃ(i)oʊ/, US: /-ˈpɑːtʃ-/, Italian: itˈtoːre karˈpattʃo c. 1460/66 – 1525/26) was an Italian painter of the Venetian school who studied under Gentile Bellini. Carpaccio was largely influence ...

, and the western facade has busts of Michelangelo,

Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, better known as Raphael (; or ; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. His work is admired for its clarity of form, ease of composition, and visual a ...

and

Titian Tiziano Vecelli or Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italian (Venetian) painter of the Renaissance, considered the most important member of the 16th-century Venetian school. He was born in Pieve di Cadore, nea ...

. The construction went on for two years between 1897 and 1898 and the Pavilion was officially inaugurated on 15 December 1898 with a large exhibition showcasing works of local artists called Croatian Salon ( hr, Hrvatski salon). The exhibition was very popular and attracted some 10,000 visitors, at a time when Zagreb had a total population of 60,000. The gallery has a total display area of 600 m² and does not have a permanent display as it specialises in one-off solo and group exhibitions representing notable oeuvres and art movements from all periods and styles, with works by both Croatian and foreign artists. Throughout its history the gallery organised around 700 exhibitions with artists ranging from the

Earth Group The Earth Group ( hr, Grupa Zemlja) was a Croatian arts collective active in Zagreb, Croatia from 1929 to 1935, when it was banned. The group aimed to defend their artistic independence against foreign influences such as Impressionism or Neoclassici ...

collective to George Grosz, Henry Moore, Auguste Rodin,

Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the Art movement, visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore th ...

Mimmo Rotella Domenico "Mimmo" Rotella (Catanzaro, 7 October 1918 – Milan, 8 January 2006) was an Italian artist considered an important figure in post-war European art. Best known for his works of décollage and psychogeographics, made from torn advert ...

, Joan Miró, Auguste Rodin, Alberto Giacometti and many others. In recent years it featured retrospective exhibitions of artists such as Milivoj Uzelac, Gilles Aillaud, Edo Kovačević,

Gerhard Richter Gerhard Richter (; born 9 February 1932) is a German visual artist. Richter has produced abstract as well as photorealistic paintings, and also photographs and glass pieces. He is widely regarded as one of the most important contemporary Germa ...

, Vilko Gecan,

Dušan Džamonja Dušan Džamonja ( sr, Душан Џамоња, ; 31 January 1928 – 14 January 2009) was a Yugoslav sculptor of Serbian ancestry. Education and career Džamonja was born in 1928 in Strumica, former Vardar Banovina, Kingdom of Yugoslavia. In ...

, Boris Demur,

Anto Jerković Anto or Antos may refer to: * Anto (name), including a list of people with the surname or given name * Antos (name), including a list of people with the surname or given name * Antofagasta PLC Antofagasta plc is a Chilean multinational. It is o ...

, Marijan Trepše, Bela Csikos Sesia,

Nasta Rojc Nasta Rojc (6 November 1883 – 6 November 1964) was one of the most prominent Croatian painters in the early twentieth century. Born in Bjelovar, she was a sickly child and a misfit. She did not enjoy school or playing with other children, but l ...

and group exhibitions which featured works of contemporary artists such as

Santiago Sierra Santiago Sierra (born 1966) is a Spanish artist, known for performance art and installation art. Much of his work deals with the topic of social inequities. He lives in Madrid. Career Sierra's most well-known works involve hiring laborers to co ...

and Boris Mikhailov, as well as 19th-century artists such as

Karl von Piloty Karl Theodor von Piloty (1 October 1826 – 21 July 1886) was a German painter, noted for his historical subjects, and recognised as the foremost representative of the realistic school in Germany. Life and work Piloty was born in Munich. His fa ...

, Nikolaos Gyzis,

Gabriel von Max Gabriel Cornelius Ritter von Max (23 August 1840 – 24 November 1915) was a Prague-born Austrian painter. Biography He was born Gabriel Cornelius Max, the son of the sculptor Josef Max and Anna Schumann. He studied between 1855 and 1858 at ...

and

Franz Stuck Franz von Stuck (February 23, 1863 – August 30, 1928), born Franz Stuck, was a German painter, sculptor, printmaker, and architect. Stuck was best known for his paintings of ancient mythology, receiving substantial critical acclaim with '' The ...

. In 2006, the glass roof of the Pavilion was renovated and the lighting system was replaced. The

renovation Renovation (also called remodeling) is the process of improving broken, damaged, or outdated structures. Renovations are typically done on either commercial or residential buildings. Additionally, renovation can refer to making something new, ...

works continued for seven years and were completed in 2013. In 2020, the Pavilion was damaged by a strong earthquake. As of 2021, it remains closed to visitors.

References

External links

*— {{Authority control Art museums and galleries in Zagreb Donji grad, Zagreb Fellner & Helmer buildings Hönigsberg & Deutsch buildings Art galleries established in 1898 Buildings and structures completed in 1898 Cultural infrastructure completed in 1898 1898 establishments in Croatia 1898 establishments in Austria-Hungary Art Nouveau architecture in Zagreb Art Nouveau museum buildings Beaux-Arts architecture Neoclassical architecture in Croatia