Tag Archives: Museums

Ivan Meštrović Exhibition Diary

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Early in 2023, I went to an exhibition of sculpture by late Croatian sculptor, architect and writer Ivan Meštrović. The art gallery at Prague’s main library hosted the intriguing show. I was familiar with the artist’s name: I had admired his villa, the Ivan Meštrović Gallery, in Split on my last trip to Croatia some years ago. It contained 86 sculptures made with various materials, showing off his dramatic, dynamic and expressive style that was both poetic and poignant. Drawings and reliefs were displayed, too. The bronze statue-dotted garden was delightful. One of my favorite things about traveling was being introduced to the works of various artists. I was enamored with Meštrović’s creations, and his unique, powerful style was forever embedded in my memory.

During Meštrović’s illustrious career that spanned six decades, he had been influenced by a number of styles ranging from Art Nouveau, Symbolism, Impressionism, Art Deco, Neoclassicism and Late Realism. Classicism played a major role in shaping his artistic style, too. Auguste Rodin’s naturalist style, which he had meticulously studied, greatly inspired him. During his extensive travels, Meštrović also saw Michelangelo’s creations, which affected his own work. poignant.

Meštrović’s subjects were diverse as well. He took on religious themes, created portrait busts, made sculptural monuments and delved into studies of figures. A firm believer in promoting Yugoslav national identity, he also presented folk themes and national myths. He fervently advocated for pan-Slavism, and some of his works represented historical events in Slav history.

The sculptor’s career took off when he exhibited his works in Vienna during 1905 as part of the Secession Group. While living in Paris for two years, he received recognition from all over the world and was very prolific. Then he spent four years in Rome, where he was lauded for his design of the Serbian Pavilion at Rome’s1911 International Exhibition. During World War I, he traveled extensively and spoke out against the Habsburg monarchy that controlled his homeland.

He returned to his homeland after the war ended and achieved much success while living in Zagreb. He even created many sculptures for King Alexander I of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. He continued to travel, even having an exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum in New York during the 1920s.

During World War II, Meštrović’s life was far from rosy. In 1941, he spent three-and-a-half months in prison. The following year his first wife died, and many of her Jewish relatives perished during the war. Thanks to the Vatican, Meštrović was let out of prison and took off to Venice and then back to Rome. He even met Pope Pius XII.

After World War II, he refused to return to Yugoslavia because the Communists were in control. He wound up in the USA during 1946, when he took a position as a professor at Syracuse University. His works were displayed at the Metropolitan Museum of New York the following year, and he was the first Croatian to do so. He continued to achieve great success and much recognition in the USA and even received the American Academy of Arts and Letters’ Gold Medal in the field of sculpture during1953. American President Dwight D. Eisenhower was so impressed with Meštrović that he gave him US citizenship. Meštrović took a job at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana soon after that. He designed monuments at Notre Dame, and his sculpture is featured in the university’s art museum.

He died in Indiana during 1962 at the age of 79 and was buried in his hometown of Otavice, though the Communists in control of Yugoslavia created many difficulties. His sculptures can be seen all over the world: in Serbia and Romania as well as in the United States, including Louisiana, Indiana, New York and Illinois.

This exhibition focused on Meštrović’s Czechoslovak connection as he had developed an affinity for Czech culture. He befriended the first democratic President of Czechoslovakia, Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk. They both had taken an anti-Habsburg stance during World War I. Also, Meštrović and Masaryk had lived in exile during the first World War. They both admired Slav history. While Meštrović wanted a united Yugoslavia of Croats, Serbs and Slovenes, Masaryk tried to forge a united Czechoslovakia of Czechs and Slovaks. Meštrović sculpted two busts of Masaryk in 1923 as well as busts of his wife Charlotte and his daughter Alice. He created these busts at the Czechoslovak President’s summer residence, Lány Chateau. I recalled spending some sunny afternoons in the park of the chateau in Lány as well as paying my respects at the Masaryk family graves.

Masaryk was by no means the only Czech Meštrović knew. For example, Meštrović was friends with Czech sculptor Bohumil Kafka and even created a portrait bust of Kafka during 1908.

Meštrović’s work was first unveiled in Prague during 1903, when the Habsburgs ruled the Czech lands. His work was included in an exhibition featuring Croatian artists at the Mánes Association in Prague. Mestrovic had another exhibition in Prague during 1933. President Masaryk was so impressed with Meštrović that he presented the Croatian sculptor with the Order of the White Lion award during 1926.

I was enthralled with the Czech connection between Meštrović and artists in Czechoslovakia. Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk was one of my heroes, and I was very interested in life during the First Republic, when Masaryk was president. I felt strong emotions when viewing Meštrović’s powerful works. I also thought back to my introduction to Meštrović’s creations in Split. What a discovery! I was glad to be reacquainted with Meštrović’s sculptures. Seeing his renditions in person was a profound experience.

Tracy A. Burns is a writer, proofreader and editor in Prague.

Biblioteca and Pinacoteca Ambrosiana Diary

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This library and art gallery in Milan is named after the patron saint of the city, Ambrose. The library harkens back to 1609, when Cardinal Federico Borromeo founded it, and the same year it opened to the public.

One of Leonardo da Vinci’s drawings of the Codex Atlanticus

The biblioteca houses the Codex Atlanticus by Leonardo da Vinci as well as many of his other manuscripts plus about 12,000 drawings by European artists, ranging from the 14th to 19th century. Raphael and Pisanello are represented in this collection of drawings, too. Many of its more than a million printed volumes hail from the 16th century. There are almost 40,000 manuscripts in numerous languages, including Italian, Latin, Greek and Arabic as well as some 22,000 engravings. Ancient maps, musical manuscripts and parchments also make up the collection. Some prominent guests included poet Lord Byron and novelist Mary Shelley.

Another of Leonardo’s drawings from the Codex Atlanticus

During World War II the library was damaged, and the opera libretti for La Scala Opera House were destroyed. The building was opened again in the early 1950s after undergoing renovations. More reconstruction took place in the 1990s.

When I visited, some of Leonardo’s works for the Codex Atlanticus, the largest collection of da Vinci’s drawings and writings, were on display in the library. The exhibition left me spellbound. I perused studies in aerodynamics and drawings of mechanical wings as well as various types of weapons. Leonardo rendered a large sling to throw stones and a machine to pump water from a well inside a building, for example.

I gazed upwards after studying the drawings by Leonardo, and I was filled with awe. I don’t know if I have ever seen such an incredible library. I just wanted to stand there all day, gazing at the wall-to-wall bookcases as I wondered about the titles and contents of each volume.

Established in 1618 with the collections of Cardinal Federico Borromeo, the pinacoteca was just as impressive as the library. The 24 rooms were dominated by Renaissance artworks but also boasted of renditions by 17th century Lombard artists, 18th century painters and 19th and early 20th century creators. I was especially struck by da Vinci’s 15th century “Portrait of a Musician” as it was the only portrait that he had painted. I noted the musical scroll in one hand of the sitter and was captivated by the detailed curly locks of hair, the musician’s brown eyes and his red cap.

Caravaggio’s insect-infested “Basket of Fruit” tells a story of diminishing beauty by displaying rotting fruit. Bramantino’s “Adoration of the Christ Child” shows the kneeling Bernardino of Siena, Francis of Assisi, Benedict of Nursia and the Virgin Mary making an understandable fuss over baby Jesus. I loved the angels playing musical instruments behind those figures. Emperor Augustus also makes an appearance.

Bergognone’s “Sacred Conversation” shows the Virgin Mary and Christ Child on a massive golden throne, baby Jesus on the Virgin Mary’s lap. Solemn angels flutter in the background. I was struck by the details of the Virgin Mary’s hair and by the material of the clothing worn by the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus. The two were surrounded by saints with captivating headwear, including Saint Ambrose and Saint Jerome.

Another painting that left me speechless was Sandro Botticelli’s “The Madonna of the Pavilion.” The artist’s meticulousness was evident. The artwork shows the Virgin and Child with much symbolism. The pavilion that two angels open to reveal the Christ Child is rich in biblical meaning both in the Old and New Testament. I could almost feel the paper of the pages making up the open book in the painting.

Raphael’s School of Athens

Raphael’s cartoon of the “School of Athens” is a study for the Italian Renaissance fresco painted in the early 1500s for the Raphael Rooms in the Vatican Museum. I recalled seeing the skillful rendition of philosophers and scientists from Ancient Greece at the Vatican on my 40th birthday as I mulled over the dominant role that perspective played in the artwork. Plato, Aristotle and Pythagoras appear in the fresco. Leonardo and Michelangelo are present as Plato and Heraclitus.

Other paintings that awed me were the fantastic landscapes of Paul Brill, whose works I had discovered some years earlier in Edinburgh. Jan Brueghel’s detailed landscapes and still lifes also are close to my heart, and I adored masterpieces from the Netherlands. I stared at these paintings, losing myself in the fantastical landscapes and details that were so masterfully rendered by both artists. I felt a special connection to these works featuring a dream-like quality as if I could be transported into a fantasy world by merely peering at the canvases.

Other paintings that captured my undivided attention had been created by Bernardino Luini (I fondly recalled his paintings in Milan’s Church of Saint Maurizio), Tizian, Jacopo Bassano, Moretto and Daniele Crespi as well as Francesco Hayez, whose works I knew well from the Brera Gallery in the same city. Andrea Bianchi had created “The Last Supper,” imitating da Vinci’s masterpiece. Tizian’s “Adoration of the Magi,” Bramantino’s “Madonna of the Towers” and the locks of hair of Lucrezia Borgia all left me awe-struck.

The sculptures and frescoes from the second to 16th century in the Sala del Bambaia are very noteworthy. The Hindu art of the Berger Collection captivated me. The Flemish and German painting from the 15th to 17th century enthralled. Ceramics also play an intriguing role in the collection.

I was so awed by this gallery and library that I visited it twice during my first trip to Milan. I peered at every painting and sculpture, trying to take in each artistic creation, feeling so blessed to be able to see all these masterpieces with my own eyes.

Tracy A. Burns is a writer, proofreader and editor in Prague.

Castelvecchio Museum Diary

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My first stop in Verona was the Castelvecchio Museum, a sprawling edifice that looks like a medieval fortress. The Castelvecchio hails from 1354 to 1356, when it was built for Cangrande II della Scala as a defensive structure. The Della Scala family lived there for a short time. During Napoleon’s reign, from 1801 to 1806, the building was transformed into barracks, and it served this purpose until 1924. The Castelvecchio was seriously damaged during World War II, during the time when the Germans destroyed all of Verona’s bridges. From 1958 to 1974, architect Carlo Scarpa renovated the Castelvecchio, adding modern elements to the original style that harkens back to the Middle Ages.

The expansive medieval and Renaissance spaces inside house 30 halls of Italian and European painting and sculpture, dating from the Romanesque era to the 1700s. I also saw ancient weapons, ceramics, gold artifacts, bells and miniatures, for instance. I especially liked the walkways outside. They offer panoramic views of romantic Verona.

Artists represented in the collection include Pisanello, Giovanni Bellini, Jacopo Bellini, Carlo Crivelli, Andrea Mantegna, Jacopo Tintoretto and Tiepolo. Pisanello’s “Madonna of the Quail,” Jacobo Bellini’s “Madonna of Humility” and Mantegna’s “Holy Family” are a few of the highlights. The Romanesque sculpture also is impressive.

An intriguing true crime story is connected to the museum. In 2015, three thieves made off with 17 paintings, including masterpieces by Jacopo Bellini, Giovanni Bellini, Andrea Mantegna, Tintoretto, Peter Paul Rubens and Hans de Jode. The following year, the museum got the works of art back from Odessa thanks to Ukrainian border guards. It remains one of the most significant art heists to take place in Italy.

Tracy A. Burns is a writer, proofreader and editor in Prague.

Caso Museo Boschi Di Stefano Diary

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I regretted not having time to visit the house museum Boschi Di Stefano the first time I visited Milan. It was far from the center, where I spent much of my introductory days in the city. During my second visit the following year, I made sure I did not miss this museum.

I got off the metro at the Lima station, in which felt to me like a dangerous area. Yet, five minutes from the metro, I walked down a street lined with elegant buildings, which gave off an altogether different atmosphere – one of calmness and grandeur. The museum was on the second floor of a majestic building built between 1929 and 1931 by Piero Portaluppi, whose name was familiar to me because he had designed Milan’s Villa Necchi Campiglio, a former home with dazzling Art Deco adornment inside. I recalled the works by Pablo Picasso and the lush garden with pool and tennis courts at the Villa Necchi, one of the highlights of my first visit to this remarkable city.

I loved house museums because they had a more intimate quality than bigger, impersonal art spaces. I could sense that these house museums had once been somebody’s home. Trials and tribulations of daily life had taken place here. Private conversations had been voiced here. This particular house museum had once been the home of Antonio Boschi and Marieda Di Stefano, a married couple who had amassed a collection of some 2,000 pieces of art, mostly Italian in origin. They tied the knot in 1927 as Boschi, a veteran of World War I, went on to become a successful engineer. Marieda was an artist herself who had an affinity for ceramics. Many of her artistic creations can be seen here, too. A school of ceramics was situated a floor below.

The Caso Museo Boschi Di Stefano includes 11 spaces and focuses on 20th century art dated from 1900 to 1960 – mostly paintings but also drawings, sculpture and furniture. About 300 works are on display. The museum has been open to the public since 2003.

I felt overwhelmed as I contemplated the paintings that covered the entirety of the walls from the bottom all the way to the top. I was almost dizzy with delight, gazing at all the paintings, some falling into the category of modern art while others showed off a contemporary style. The works were displayed in a chronological fashion, so I could see how styles developed during those 60 years.

I recognized paintings by Giorgio De Chirico, Pablo Picasso, Amadeo Modigliana, Lucio Fontana and Raoul Dufy. Other pictorial treasures included 66 works by Roberto Crippa; 129 renditions by Gianni Dova; and 57 creations by Cesare Peverelli. Giuseppe Ajmone, Piero Manzoni, Arturo Martini and Sandro Martini, among others, were also represented there. I recognized Joe Columbo’s distinct style from an exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in Milan the previous year.

What once was a guest room is now filled with furnishings for a study, the pieces dating from the 1930s. The dining room was a delight, too. I was fascinated with the Agena ceiling light, a unique round structure with what look like yellow cups protruding from the ball-like form. I didn’t understand what the style of the ceiling light meant, but it was fascinating to see it with my own eyes.

I went through the flat twice to try to take in all the art that surrounded me. It was a mesmerizing and breathtaking experience. The development of 20th century art was on display, each work speaking volumes about artistic creations during a time period in which I had not lived but could now better appreciate.

Tracy A. Burns is a writer, proofreader and editor in Prague.

Museo Bagatti Valsecchi Diary

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This museum of Renaissance and neo-Renaissance decorated apartments in a palace is one of my favorite sights in Milan. It is big enough to include many treasures but yet small enough to have an intimate feel. Because the exhibition focuses on the Renaissance and neo-Renaissance, I didn’t feel overwhelmed as I often do when displays include many styles from numerous eras. 

The history of the museum is enthralling. In the second half of the 19th century, Fausto and Giuseppe Bagatti Valsecchi furnished their palace located from via Gesu to via Santo Spirito in Milan with works of Renaissance and Neo-Renaissance art – tapestries, paintings, sculpture and weapons, for example. The furniture hails from Italy, Britain, Japan, France, Germany and Spain. Even though the apartments were transformed into a museum during 1974, the public wasn’t able to view them until 1994.

Giuseppe lived in his apartment with his wife. His five children lived on another floor with their nanny. Fausto had his own apartment on the same floor as Giuseppe. While they managed various charities and traveled, they also had some intriguing hobbies. Fausto enjoyed riding in hot-air balloons and Giuseppe was one of the first to ride a velocipede. They used their Renaissance-furnished apartments for daily activities rather than treating the spaces as a museum. Even though it was decorated to look like the Renaissance, the brothers had installed modern amenities, including hot and cold water and electricity. In fact, this palace made a name for itself as one of the first private homes in the world to install electricity.

I especially liked the coffered ceilings and Latin inscriptions throughout the flats. Throughout the palace I saw the distinguished family crests of lily and eagle. The Neo-Renaissance frames used to display Renaissance art were appealing, fusing the old with the new or newer.

Many spaces captured my attention, including the Fresco Room, where15th century frescoes make a fascinating appearance. The Bevilacqua Room showed off the Madonna and Child by the artist after which the space is named. I took a good look at this innovative work from the 15th century. It was made of glass stones, silver thread, velvet and gold. A coffered ceiling and gold-and-red silk wall coverings added to the elegance of the space.

I have always loved libraries, and this library was no exception. On the 16th century terrestrial globe in the library, North America is labeled as “Unknown Territory.”

The largest room was the Grand Salon with a coffered ceiling adorned with pine cone images. Family crests made an appearance as did Latin inscriptions. The frieze featured a theme from Greek mythology and included 16th century frescoes. The red-and-gold décor gave the room a special sense of grandeur. The six stained glass windows were exquisite.

The living room of Giuseppe and Carolina included 16th century decorated paneling, red furniture with velvet upholstery and a piano. The Red Room, which served as the couple’s bedroom, showed off a coffered ceiling and 15th and 16th century paintings as well as a canopied bed with red covering. A door in this room leads to the children’s floor, so the children never had to walk through the Renaissance-decorated apartments.

The Dining Room was elegant, too. The wall coverings showed the story of Persian king Cyrus. The majolica plates showed scenes from Alexander the Great’s life.

The bed in Fausto’s Bedroom was adorned with head and foot boards sporting 16th century reliefs. The decorated Neo-Renaissance coffered ceiling was another highlight. A 15th century altarpiece also enthralled. I noticed a clock and a lamp shaped like skulls, too.

I noticed the 16th century ceiling decorated with the two family crests and a Latin inscription in Giuseppe’s Bedroom, called “the Green Room.” The headboard showed off a Pieta scene.

The armory was a long and narrow room with helmets, armor, swords and shields. While I am not especially interested in weaponry, it was impressive.

I liked the Bagatti Valsecchi Room where visitors can open drawers and see photos of the two brothers and some of their personal belongings. One photo that captivated me showed the palace after a section was bombed during the second world war. On another photograph, I saw Giuseppe on a velocipede.

After my visit, I decide that this was my favorite museum in Milan because there was so much to appreciate and yet the flats had an intimacy that larger museums lack. The apartments brought the Renaissance to life with its artifacts. The photos of the two brothers made the apartments feel even more intimate. I was given the chance of having a glimpse of their lives, of getting to know them. That the flat was used for daily life and hadn’t been a museum when the brothers were alive made it all the more appealing. The painted coffered ceilings, the elegant beds with canopies and the 15th and 16th century paintings and frescoes throughout made great impressions on me.

I finally left, knowing someday I would be back because this was a museum I could go back to again and again, greatly enriching my life with each visit.

Tracy A. Burns is a writer, proofreader and editor in Prague.

Picture Gallery in Sforza Castle Diary

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The Sforza Castle in Milan was built for Galeazzo II Visconti in the second half of the 14th century. It was destroyed in the mid-15th century, but the duke of Milan, Francesco Sforza, rebuilt it. Then the Sforza family inhabited the castle. The end of the 1400s was a time of splendor. During the 15th century, Leonardo da Vinci and Bramante created frescoes in the castle. The castle became one of the largest in Europe in the 16th century.

Later, the castle fell on hard times and was transformed into a citadel. The ducal apartments were used as barracks and stables under Spanish, Austrian, French and again Austrian rule. An armory was for a time also on the premises. At the end of the 1800s, the castle became the property of the city of Milan. The unification of Italy prompted the complex to be reconstructed and made into a museum. The castle took on the appearance it had when it had been under Sforza control. Though the central tower is not original, it is made to look like it had when built in 1521.

During World War II, the complex suffered much damage but was reconstructed. Now the castle includes museums and cultural institutes. Several of the other museums include those featuring ancient art and arms as well as one highlighting antique wooden furniture and sculpture. The Pieta Rondanini by Michelangelo is also a sight not to be missed.

The Picture Gallery focuses on Milanese and Lombard paintings from the 15th to the 18th century with over 230 works on display. It also includes remarkable Venetian and 17th century Dutch and Flemish works. Some Lombard artists represented are Foppa, Bramantino and Bernardino Luini. Other artists whose paintings amaze are Andrea Mantegna, Bergognone, Giovanni Bellini, Lorenzo Lotto, Correggio, Tintoretto, Tiziano, Tiepolo and Canaletto. One highlight is the Trivulzio Madonna by Mantegna from 1497. This important work shows Madonna on a throne, flanked by saints. Angels sing, and cherub faces are included in the decoration. Yet the exhibition does not only contain paintings. Some sculptures, busts and medals are on display, too.

Tracy Burns is a writer, proofreader and editor in Prague.

Museo del Duomo in Milan Diary

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When I visited the Cathedral Museum in Milan, I didn’t expect it to be so big. The museum measured 2,000 meters square, and there were 26 rooms. Set up in chronological order, the artifacts included stained glass windows, paintings, tapestries, architectural models, sculpture, bronze doors, goldsmithing artifacts and more. The museum, located on the ground floor of the Palazzo Reale, allowed me to see the various phases of construction from its foundation in 1386 to the 20th century. The museum dates back to 1953. Ten more rooms were added in 1960, and it was reopened in 1973. It underwent major renovation during this century, too.

Placed in the museum during 2013 after renovation was completed, the Treasures of the Cathedral are on display in two rooms and feature liturgical objects from the 5th to the 17th century. I saw the Cross of Chiaravalle, a masterpiece of Romanesque goldsmithing art. The Cross of San Carlo was another goldsmithing object that amazed. It was made in Mannerist style during the 1500s. The cross is even used in cathedral ceremonies new archbishops are inaugurated. La Pace di Pio V, dated around 1565, utilized lapis lazuli decoration on columns and a sarcophagus. The cross was studded with diamonds. Gold decoration added to its beauty. Il Calice delle Arti Liberali is a chalice placed on a copper gilded frame. Made in Milan during the 1500s, the chalice has enamel decoration.

Perhaps my favorite part of the museum was the section with the stained-glass windows. I was enthusiastic about having the opportunity to see stained-glass windows up close. These panels depicting scenes from the Old Testament had been created by artists from Lombardy, France, Germany and the Netherlands. I loved stained-glass windows, and they were my favorite part of the cathedral’s interior. I spent so much time staring at those windows when I was inside the cathedral.

The sculpture was another delight. The marble Late Gothic figures hailed from the first 50 years of the cathedral’s construction. There were also statues made of terracotta from the Mannerist and Baroque eras. A few of the noteworthy sculptures featured Saint Agnes, Saint George and Galeazzo Maria Sforza. The Sforza noble family had had a vast influence on the city’s development and politics. I also was amazed by the gargoyles. I was thrilled that I had the chance to see them close up.

A model of the entire cathedral comprised three centuries of work and was made at a scale of 1:20. Another model that caught my attention was an early 16th century wooden rendition of the cathedral, made by Bernardino Zenale from Treviglio. This model provided insights into the structural development of the various sections of the cathedral, such as the apse, transept and tiberium.

I found the objects in the museum stunning. I was flabbergasted by their beauty. I had expected a small museum of liturgical items, not such an amazing array of artifacts. I had learned how the cathedral had been constructed in various eras and about the main players in the history of the structure.

Leaving the Museo del Duomo, I was very satisfied with my visit and ready for the temporary Titian exhibition in the Palazzo Reale.

Tracy A. Burns is a writer, proofreader and editor in Prague.

Museo del Novecento Diary

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When I looked at the Palazzo dell’Arengario, which houses the Museo del Novecento, I thought that the exterior was an eyesore as it was punctuated by a Fascist style of architecture. It was intriguing, nonetheless. The two symmetrical buildings each had three tiers. Arcades made an appearance as well as did bas reliefs. Even though construction commenced in 1936, the palace was not completed until 1956. During World War II, bombs severely damaged the edifice. In the early years of the 21st century, it was renovated. The museum opened in 2010. About 400 works by mostly Italian artists are on display in chronological order, decade-by-decade.

A spiral ramp takes the visitors to the first three floors. It may look like something out of science fiction, but I thought the ramp interrupted the space. I thought it was more of a hassle rather than a unique and innovative feature. In the Hirschhorn or Guggenheim, the ramp and the locations of the artwork complement each other. I felt that at the Museo del Novecento the ramp and pieces of art worked against each other, dividing rather than complementing.

The first painting that caught my attention was the large canvas called The Fourth Estate by Giuseppe Pellizza da Volpedo. It was lcreated from 1898 to 1902 in Divisionist style. This kind of painting utilizes individual points of color in a neo-Impressionist fashion. Depicting workers on strike, the painting gets its name from the working class that embodies the meaning of “the fourth estate.” Out of the crowd of demonstrators and into the light step three figures, two men and a woman holding a baby. They are walking toward the viewer confidently, not at all in a hurry. They are clearly there to try to reach a deal with their employer. But they are not panicked or nervous. They have terms and conditions that have to be met. The colors in the painting have a cold quality, but the light gives the group a vibrancy that makes them look powerful and in control of the situation.

Paul Klee’s artwork holds a prominent place in the museum.

Foreign artists represented included Georges Braque, Wassily Kandinsky, Henri Matisse, Paul Klee, Pablo Picasso and Piet Mondrian. Indeed, these works are some of the most significant in the collection. Klee’s Wald Bau from 1919 and Kandinsky’s Composition 1916 stand out, for example.

One section of the museum focuses on Italian Futurists, such as Umberto Boccioni, Giacomo Balla and Fortunato Depero. In fact, one room is dedicated to Boccioni’s works. I had visited a museum featuring Depero’s works in Rovereto a few years earlier, so I was familiar with the Futurist style. Born in Italy during the early 20th century, Futurism looked to the future rather than to the past. It praised modernity and technological advances. Industrial cities, cars and airplanes were often subjects of Futurist artworks. Depero’s creations certainly looked like they were in motion. I recalled some people depicted in one work as resembling machines.

The Novecento of the 1920s is well represented with a style that was inspired by ancient Roman art and Renaissance art, which are meshed together in an abstract way. Giorgio de Chirico’s surrealism is on display, too. In fact, his creations take up an entire room. Art Informel by Italian artists and the Azimeth group are featured in the museum, too. The last section follows trends from the Sixties to the Eighties with exhibits of Kinetic Art, Programmed Art, Pop Art, Analytical Painting and Conceptual Art. Lucio Fontana’s works take up the top floor. Take a look at his neon sculpture and you’ll realize what an artistic journey you have taken from the social realism of The Fourth Estate floors below.

A few works worth mentioning include Giacomo Balla’s Ragazza che corre sul balcone from 1912 and Umberto Boccioni’s Svilippo di una bottiglia nello spazio from 1913-35. Balla’s painting showing a boy running on a balcony is dynamic and vivacious as it shows spontaneous movement and the joy and innocence of childhood. The colors of blue, brown and green with white help to create the sense of motion that is central to the painting. Futurism is all about movement as opposed to the static and still life qualities of Cubism.

While Boccioni was also a Futurist, his bronze sculpture Sviluppo di una bottiglia nello spazio showcased a bottle on a plate in unique way that is reminiscent of a natura morta. This kind of still life was not at all typical for Boccioni’s style because of its lack of movement.

Another painting by Paul Klee

Amedeo Modigliani’s portraits were on display, too. He painted the Parisian art collector Paul Guillaume with one eye, for instance. In Arturo Martini’s sculpture La convalescente from 1932, the sick, young woman who is the subject of the work has been forgotten and abandoned. Her empty gaze and lost look practically ripped through my heart. It reminded me of when I was taken downstairs on a stretcher to have my gallbladder operation. The nurses left me on the stretcher in the empty space next to the operating room. I could hear the doctor trying to wake up the patient. At first she didn’t respond. He had to talk to her several times. For a few minutes, I thought that I had been abandoned and that the woman having the operation before me had died. I wanted to run out of there, but I was drugged and could hardly move. Finally, she regained consciousness.

One of the surrealist works by De Chirico

I particularly liked De Chirico’s surrealist works with vibrant colors. His I bagni misteriosi was inspired by a 16th century work by Lucas Cranach. Ever since I was a child, I have loved Klee’s abstract art. For me Klee’s art has a sense of rationality and logic that I often find absent in abstract works.

A painting with a theme of Chinese revolutions

On the third floor there are glass walls that provide great views of the Duomo Square and the cathedral as well as Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II shopping arcade. I stood in that room for a long time, surveying the passersby walking to and fro below me, gazing at the long line to enter the cathedral and the people having lunch at expensive restaurants on the square. It was nice to be up there, looking down at the crowds on that scorching hot May day.

Tracy A. Burns is a writer, editor and proofreader in Prague.

Teatro alla Scala Diary

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A theatre and classical music aficionado, I was excited to tour the La Scala Theatre in Milan, where operas and ballets were staged. Classical music concerts by two orchestras also took place there. A chorus called the theatre home, too. I bought my ticket for the tour online before traveling to Italy. I was not disappointed.

First, I gazed at the exterior. The neoclassical building emphasized functionality. It blended in with other buildings on La Scala Square. I had assumed the famous edifice would stand out with an exterior featuring much ornamentation. When the theatre was built, the square was nonexistent, and La Scala did not have a dominant location on the street. It was one of many buildings. Still, it looked elegant. I gazed at the decorated tympanum with bas relief and stucco adornment. I also saw half-columns and two sides of an interrupted balustrade along with decorated parapets.

Once inside, I had some free time before the tour so I walked through the Theatre Museum. I saw many busts of famous members of the opera ensemble, statues, paintings and musical instruments, such as a piano that Franz Liszt had played. There was a special costume exhibition there, too. I am afraid that I am not an expert at opera, so I was not able to recognize all the names of those represented in the museum. A legendary conductor that had worked magic at La Scala was Arturo Toscanini. He had put into place many reforms and had staged works by Richard Wagner, for instance.

Numerous operas by Verdi had been performed at La Scala, and Verdi had made a name for himself with Nabucco, staged at La Scala in 1842. Maria Callas had sung on that stage, her amazing voice filling the auditorium. Herbert von Karajan had conducted concerts at La Scala. I was familiar with his work. I had some of the concerts he had conducted in various places on CDs.

In 1965 Claudio Abbado made his debut. He conducted operas as well as concerts. Riccardo Muti first conducted there in 1981. From 1989 to 1998, he created productions of masterpieces such as Rigoletto, La Traviata and MacBeth.

Operas by Verdi, Giacomo Puccini, Amilcare Ponchielli, Vincenzo Bellini, Gioachino Rossini, Gaetano Donizetti and Karlheinz Stockhausen all had premiered at La Scala. The small museum was very intriguing and certainly a delight for opera lovers.

At the beginning of our tour, the guide told us about the history of the building. The city’s Teatro Regio Ducale burned down in 1776, and Milan needed a new theatre for operas. This edifice was constructed over the site of a demolished church called Santa Maria della Scala, from which the theatre got its name. The owners of the boxes at the destroyed Teatro Regio Ducale paid for the construction. It took two years to build.

Teatro alla Scala opened on August 3, 1778, staging Antonio Salieri’s opera Europa riconosciuta. The La Scale Theatre became an important meeting point for the upper class. At that time, there were no chairs on the main floor, so spectators had to stand during the performance. Also, there was no orchestra pit. Over 80 oil lamps provided light on the stage area while about 1,000 additional lamps were situated elsewhere in the building. Buckets full of water were stored in several rooms in case of a fire. Electric lighting was not installed until 1883. In the early days, the owners of the boxes decorated their spaces themselves, choosing various colors of wallpaper, for instance. In 1844, the boxes all were decorated in red. Today remnants of the original décor can be seen in some boxes. Some are adorned with ceiling frescoes or with mirrors and stucco ornamentation.

However, a casino was also located in the building during the initial seasons. There was a space in the theatre where much bartering took place. For example, people swapped horses. The voices in the foyer could be quite loud so that it was sometimes difficult to hear the performance.

Significant renovation took place in 1907. The seating area originally had 3,000 seats, but after reconstruction the number of seats decreased to 1,987. In 1938 movable bridges and levels were added to the stage, so it was easy to change sets immediately. The system was actually quite complex.

La Scala was badly damaged by bombs during World War II. The theatre was reconstructed and opened with much aplomb in May of 1946. More restoration work occurred between 2002 and 2004, and the ensembles had to perform elsewhere for those two years. Today the theater is divided into four sections of boxes and two galleries for a total of six levels. The backstage area was enlarged during that renovation. The new stage remains one of the biggest in Italy. (Looking at the stage, I was struck by how large and deep it was.) Architect Mario Botta had an electronic system installed next to seats so spectators could read the libretto in English, Italian or the original language of the production while watching the spectacle. This technological feature intrigued me.

In 2005 there were many problems with management. In 2006, during a performance of Aida, the audience was incessantly booing tenor Roberto Alagna. The actor left the stage and did not return. His understudy had to take up the role immediately. He didn’t even have time to put on a costume.

The interior style was neoclassical with gold and red colors dominating the seating area. Medallions and floral as well as animal motifs provided adornment inside. I was overwhelmed by La Scala’s beauty. We sat in the royal box for a short time and watched a rehearsal for Gioconda, which had had its premiere at La Scala centuries earlier. We weren’t allowed to remain there for long, but it was still one of the highlights of my visit to Milan.

Maybe next time I come to Milan I will be able to attend an opera or a classical concert at La Scala.

Tracy A. Burns is a writer, editor and proofreader in Prague.

Chudenice Chateau Diary

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It was my first visit to Chudenice. The first thing that caught my attention was the tranquility of the village. It was truly peaceful there. I felt calm in a way I was not able to feel in a busy metropolis.

I took a good look at the exterior of the chateau. One section was beautiful while another was in a dilapidated state. I thought of Nebílovy Chateau near Pilsen and how that chateau badly needed money to restore the façade of one of the buildings.

Actors in the plays Kvapil worked on.
Kvapil directed this Shakespearian classic at the Vinohrady Theatre.

We went inside. First, we visited a museum dedicated, in part, to Chudenice native Jaroslav Kvapil, who had been a poet, playwright, translator, dramaturg and director. The museum also showcased other Chudenice natives and village life. Kvapil worked with the National Theatre and Vinohrady Theatre for many years. In 1901 he wrote the libretto for Antonín Dvořák’s opera Rusalka. He was involved in the resistance during World War I as he supported the creation of an independent Czechoslovakia. During World War II, he founded an organization of resisters. Then the Nazis learned of the existence of his group. Kvapil was imprisoned for 11 months. When the Communists were taking control in 1948, he signed a petition, attempting to save democracy in Czechoslovakia. He died in 1950 and is buried in Chudenice.

Artwork also made up part of the museum.
Part of the museum dealt with village life in the past.
A mill from centuries past.

Kvapil’s career was impressive indeed. From 1893 to 1937, he directed or co-directed 205 plays at the National Theatre. Later, he took up a position with the Vinohrady Theatre. Plays by Jaroslav Vrchlický, Alois Jirásek, the Čapek brothers, William Shakespeare and Henrik Ibsen, for example, were staged under his guidance. In the small museum, I saw family photos, posters of the plays he worked on and his typewriter, for instance. I hadn’t known much about him before visiting the museum, even though I had taken a great interest in Czech theatre over the years.

At first I thought this figure was real.
An old machine used to make honey

Soon the tour began. The guide told us about the history of the chateau and town, which had been connected to the Černín family since the end of the 13th century when Drslav from Chudenice took possession of the village. A Gothic fortress originated in the 14th century. The first time the chateau was mentioned in writing occurred during 1603, after Humprecht Černín died, when his property was divided between his two sons, Jindřich and Adam, who got control of the chateau.

Even though Adam was Catholic, he sided with the nobles in the uprising of the Protestant nobility against the Catholics. Catholicism was the official religion of the Habsburg Empire, controlled by the Germans. Adam was punished for his involvement. Soon afterwards, he died, and his widow Johanka from Loksan and five children lived there. Jindřich took control of the chateau until 1629. During the Thirty Years’ War, there were periods when the chateau was filled with soldiers.

The chateau was transformed into Baroque style during 1776 and now has a Classicist appearance. After World War II, it was nationalized, and the Forest Institute took control. In 1948 the town took over, and the chateau served various functions. At one time, it included a movie theatre, library and Socialist Youth Union club. There had been apartments here, too. Later the Museum of Josef Dobrovský opened on the site, named after the historian because he had spent some time there. We even saw the bedroom where Dobrovský had slept. In 2009 the Černín family moved back to Chudenice and now live in the other chateau in the town, the Empire style Lázeň, which they are reconstructing along with its English park. The guide said the Černíns often visit Chudenice Chateau and even give private tours on weekends.

The most intriguing space was the Angel’s Room, which was connected to a legend about Humprecht Černín, who worked as an imperial advisor to Emperor Rudolf II and caretaker of Prague Castle. He was also a knight of the Golden Fleece. One night during 1601, when Humprecht was 76 years old, an angel came to him and told him he would die within three days. The angel directed him to have a mass in Wolfgang Chapel above Chudenice. The prediction came true.

Now there is a fresco of a red-clad angel with silver wings on the arched ceiling. I also liked the part of another ceiling that was painted in Art Nouveau style. The porcelain in the Oriental Salon was exquisite. An Empire clock stood out as well. The Hunting Salon showcased paintings of dogs and a green tiled stove plus trophies from forests near Chudenice. There were noteworthy paintings and graphic works on display, too. A blue porcelain peacock was impressive. Some unique chandeliers were exquisite, and one Classicist tiled stove captured my attention. Old shooting targets were painted with intriguing bullet-ridden scenes. Still, I would occasionally notice that a piece of furniture needed to be repaired– for example, the upholstery of some chairs was in need of restoration. The chateau just didn’t have the finances at this point.

The portraits and photos of the family gave the chateau an intimate feel. The Černíns had made a name for themselves in Czech history, to be sure. I recalled that a famous palace in Prague, now the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was named after the Černín family, specifically after Humprecht Jan, who had it built. An employee of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had showed me around the building, and I was particularly interested in the window out of which Jan Masaryk was pushed to his death by the Communists. Jan Masaryk, the son of  son of the founder of Czechoslovakia, Tomáš G. Masaryk, had been pushed out the window by the Communists after the coup of 1948, on March 10th of that year. He had refused to resign as minister after the Communist coup. Humprecht Jan also had constructed the small chateau Humprecht near Kost Castle in the Czech Paradise. I mused that I hadn’t been there since the late 1990s or earlier.

Humprecht Jan was the most prominent member of the Černín family. The imperial count had made a name for himself as a diplomat, serving as ambassador to Venice for three years and serving Habsburg Leopold I for many years. He had inherited much property in the Czech lands, including Kost Castle, Krásný Dvůr Chateau and Mělník, all of which I had visited. While working for Czech and Austrian King Leopold I, Humprecht Jan became good friends with the Habsburg leader and even was present at Leopold I’s coronation as Roman Emperor in Frankfurt. He was a secret advisor to Leopold I and in 1675 was honored as a recipient of the distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece. He also purchased territory in Lnáře that year. I remembered Lnáře fondly as I had not only toured the chateau with its stunning frescoes but had also visited its Cat Museum, where I admired many feline-related artifacts.

Part of the Secession decoration on a ceiling

While stationed in Venice, Humprecht Jan had developed an art collection. By 1663, he owned about 300 paintings. After building Černín Palace in the 1660s, he made part of the palace into a gallery for his paintings. (Unfortunately, under his heirs the collection became dilapidated due to a lack of finances.) Humprecht Jan died when he was only 54 years old. He is buried in Černín Chapel at Prague’s St. Vitus Cathedral. 

A shooting target

After the tour, we went to the only restaurant in the village, where there were two entrees left on the menu at 2:30 in the afternoon. We had a tasty lunch. I noticed the peace and quiet, the calmness that pervaded in the village. It was wonderful to experience such tranquility in a world that can be so chaotic and troubling.

Tracy A. Burns is a writer, editor and proofreader in Prague.

The room in which Josef Dobrovský stayed