Hutsul Secession (also called Carpathian style or East Galician style) is an architectural style which developed in

Eastern Galicia Eastern Galicia (; ; ) is a geographical region in Western Ukraine (present day oblasts of Lviv Oblast, Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, Ivano-Frankivsk and Ternopil Oblast, Ternopil), having also essential historic importance in Poland. Galicia ( ...

, particularly in

Lviv Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

. The style embodies the first attempt to create a national Ukrainian style in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The style is based on local folk architecture, but incorporates elements of other regional

Secession Secession is the formal withdrawal of a group from a Polity, political entity. The process begins once a group proclaims an act of secession (such as a declaration of independence). A secession attempt might be violent or peaceful, but the goal i ...

styles. Specifically, the

Vienna Secession The Vienna Secession (; also known as the Union of Austrian Artists or ) is an art movement, closely related to Art Nouveau, that was formed in 1897 by a group of Austrian painters, graphic artists, sculptors and architects, including Josef Ho ...

coupled with the folk architecture of the

Hutsul The Hutsuls (Rusyn language, Hutsul/; ; ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group spanning parts of western Ukraine and northern Romania (i.e. parts of Bukovina and Maramureș). In Ukraine, they have often been officially and administra ...

highlanders formed the basis of the Hutsul Secession. The most prominent Hustul Secessioinist was

Ivan Levynskyi Ivan Ivanovich Levynskyi (; ; ; * July 6, 1851, Dolyna, now Ivano-Frankivsk region - † July 4, 1919, Lviv) was a Ukrainian-German architect, teacher, businessman and public figure. Biography and work Ivan Levynskyi was born 1851 in Dolina ( ...

, who headed a firm of several other architects, including Tadeusz Obmiński, Oleksandr Lushpynskyi, and Lev Levynskyi. Its incorporation of folk designs makes it similar to Ukrainian Art Nouveau.

Description

The Hutsul Secession style includes large, sloping roofs with elaborate contours. The buildings are often topped with towers akin to the bell towers of Hutsul churches. Also drawn from the Hutsul folk architecture is the range of color and décor from the utilization of metals and ceramics in the decorative aspects of buildings. The forms of the windows, awnings, and doorways are distinctly elastic, embodying the expressive forms of the movement.

Examples

First Municipal Polyclinic

The First Municipal Polyclinic is a four-story building which was constructed in 1906. The building was designed by Ivan Levynskyi and Tadeusz Obmiński and is today designated as an Architectural Monument. Formerly the Dnister Insurance Company Building, it played an important role in the cultural community of Ukraine in the years after its completion. In the 1950s, the building was redesigned, losing almost all its original interior. It was host to a Communist Party regional committee as well as several other community amenities and shops during the Cold War era, and today it is home to the clinic, a gymnasium,a pharmacy, and a binding shop.

Bursa of the Deacons of St. George's Cathedral

The Bursa of the Deacons of St. George's Cathedral finished construction in 1904 and was designed by Tadeusz Obmiński. Decorations on the façade, especially under the windows and roof, were inspired by Ukrainian embroidery. The colors of the decorative tiles on the building are brown, yellow, green, and white, also reminiscent of the traditional colors of Hutsul folk art.

Solecki Clinic

The Solecki Clinic was completed in 1908 and was designed by Oleksandr Lushpynskyi. The building was owned by Kazimierz Solecki, for whom it was named, until WWI, and it was built to be a sanatorium for the

Red Cross The organized International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 16million volunteering, volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ...

. While the building was constructed in the

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau ( ; ; ), Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and ...

style, it incorporated motifs of the Hutsul Secession.

Dormitory of the Academic House

The Dormitory of the Academic House was completed in 1906 and was a joint project between several architects of Levynskyi's firm. This building ties together the ornamentation of the Hutsul style with the underlying elements of the

Zakopane style Zakopane Style (or Witkiewicz Style) is an art style, most visible in architecture, but also found in furniture and related objects, inspired by the regional art of Poland's highland regions, most notably Podhale. Drawing on the motifs and tradi ...

. The building serves as an academic center for local students in Lviv.

Gymnasium and Bursa of the Ukrainian Pedagogical Society

Constructed by Ivan Levynskyi and Tadeusz Obmiński in 1906-1909 in late Secession style with elements of folk architecture. Today housing the Ukrainian National Forestry University.

Bursa of the National House Institute

The Bursa of the National House Institute, completed in 1907, was another joint project undertaken by Levynskyi's firm. Serving as a dormitory for boys of the National House Institute, the building was capable of housing upwards of 200 students.

References

{{reflist, {{Cite web , last1=Gregory , first1=Shambrovosky , last2=Kovalska , first2=Areta , date=27 August 2017 , title=The Hutsul Secession in Lviv: Combining Folk Architecture with Art Nouveau , url=https://forgottengalicia.com/the-hutsul-secession-in-lviv-combining-folk-architecture-with-art-nouveau/ , access-date=2 March 2021 , website=Forgotten Galicia {{Cite web , last=Tytko , first=Olha , title=Vul. Ruska, 20 – First Municipal Polyclinic (former Dnister Insurance Company Building) , url=https://lia.lvivcenter.org/en/objects/ruska-20/ , access-date=2 March 2021, website=Lviv Interactive Lviv Architecture in Ukraine Art Nouveau