Ivan Meštrović (1883–1962) Sculptor and Citizen of the World 24. 11. 2022 – 26. 2. 2023
Curators: Sandra Baborovská, Barbara Vujanović
The exhibition will explore the place of the Croatian sculptor Ivan Meštrović in the context of Central European sculpture in the early 20th century.
The Czech lands and Prague especially have attracted international cultural attention since the 1890s, for example, through the increasing number of public sculpture commissions and a cosmopolitan and open cultural milieu. The French sculptor Auguste Rodin significantly influenced this environment. A strong generation of sculptors emerged in Central Europe after the turn of the century who dealt with Rodin’s influence in a distinctive and inspiring way.
The exhibition project also aims to renew interest in the medium of sculpture and to open up the national issues of the former Yugoslavia in relation to Central Europe. Ivan Meštrović’s sculptural oeuvre, produced and scattered across Europe and overseas, serves as a case study of an artistic practice defined not only by local embeddedness but also by cross-border subjects, social demand, and climate. We trace past and present centers, past and present impulses, and determinants. The exhibition will be conceived as a map of Europe, within which Meštrović exhibited and created (Prague, Vienna, Paris, Cannes, London, Geneva, Bern, Rome, Venice, Zagreb, Belgrade, Split, Cavtat, Dubrovnik, Knin, Bucharest, Krakow, Warsaw).
Besides Europe, Meštrović worked in the United States (New York, Buffalo, Detroit, Rochester, Chicago, St. Louis, Boston, and Cleveland). In addition to the date, the places of origination are usually indicated for each work. The exhibition not only seeks to follow the criterion of artistic quality but will also try to introduce the practical issues of the artistic scene.
