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The Réseau Art Nouveau Network(European Art Nouveau Network) was founded in 1999 by European cities with an extensive Art Nouveau cultural heritage. The network has set itself the goal of researching, preserving and appropriately presenting Art Nouveau in Europe. It wants to support and inform scientists as well as educate and sensitize the general public about the European dimension of Art Nouveau. In 2014 the network was named Council of Europe Cultural Path certified.
Art Nouveau
The French term Art Nouveau(= new art) or Art Nouveau is an art era that emerged in Europe towards the end of the 19th century and lasted only a few decades. Through international exhibitions as well as photographs, this style spread quickly across Europe, but the ways of naming it varied. What was called "Art nouveau" in France and England was called "Art Nouveau" in Germany and "Secession" in Austria. In Italy it was called "Liberty", in Catalonia "Modernisme". The style elements also vary: the Franco-Belgian "Art Nouveau" is characterized by curves and floral patterns, in the German "Art Nouveau" geometric patterns are predominant.
Members of the network
The network consists of the cities listed below. One city has the chairmanship within this network (as of November 2020):
- Réseau Art Nouveau Network, urban.brussels, Mont des Arts 10-13, BE-1000 Brussels (BELGIUM). Tel.: 32 (0)2 432 83 18, Email: [email protected].
| name of the city | country | Remarks | picture |
|---|---|---|---|
1 Ålesund    | Norway | On the night of January 23, 1904, 800 houses went up in smoke and 11,000 people were left homeless. Ålesund was practically destroyed. The rebuilding of Ålesund was seen as a project of national importance, involving more than 50 architects from all over Norway. They were inspired by international - especially German - influences as well as national romanticism. In just three years, a new city rose like a phoenix from the ashes. More than 320 Art Nouveau buildings were erected side by side in a compact central area. |  Storgata Ålesund |
| 2 Aveiro | Portugal | Most of the Art Nouveau elements were imported into the city by emigrants who had enriched themselves in Brazil and wanted to showcase their wealth, their social and economic power. The underlying concept of this phenomenon is "pomp," and pomp is indeed one of the main features of the Aveiro Art Nouveau movement. The other aspect that is special to the local Art Nouveau trend is the production of tiles with Art Nouveau motifs. |  Palacete do Visconde da Granja |
| 3 Bad Nauheim | Germany | By 1900 Bad Nauheim had developed into an internationally respected health resort that was also supposed to satisfy the needs of aristocratic customers. At the turn of the century, changing hygienic and aesthetic ideas and expectations required the construction of new bathhouses. Grand Duke Ernst Ludwig of Hesse and the Rhine was a progressive ruler with a high regard for art. He was also guided by economic considerations. He expected the arts to become a promising industry. The new buildings in Bad Nauheim should demonstrate this. | _02.JPG/150px-Kurstraße_9_(Bad_Nauheim)_02.JPG) Kurstrasse 9 |
| 4 Barcelona | Spain | The originality of Catalan modernism is the result of a contradiction between tradition and modernity. Catalan society wanted to be cosmopolitan and modern. Their homes, summer villas, and public buildings, as well as factories, industrial complexes, and agricultural cooperatives have been identified with abstract modernist forms. The construction of the Eixample district in Barcelona took the city beyond its old walls and expanded the city limits. In the city of Barcelona, the three great names of architectural modernism left behind some of their best works: Antoni Gaudi, Josep Puig i Cadafalch and Lluis Domenech i Montaner. |  Palau de la Música Catalana |
| 5 Brussels | Belgium | In 1893 the architect Victor Horta designed the first Art Nouveau building for Professor Emile Tassel. This row house was the first compelling example of the rejuvenation of architecture. In Horta's work you can see the steel girders in the glass domes, you can find a variety of colors, you can see a natural play of light. Further pioneers of Art Nouveau are Paul Hankar and Henry van de Velde. The elegance of her work led to Art Nouveau spreading from Brussels to all of Europe. |  Ensemble of Art Nouveau houses |
| 6 Budapest | Hungary | The city of Budapest did not come into being until 1873 as a result of the amalgamation of the previously independent cities of Buda, Pest and Óbuda. Around 1900 it experienced its golden age. During this period the population tripled and the number of buildings doubled. The architectural style was not uniform. On the one hand it was historicism such as neo-Gothic and neo-Baroque, on the other hand the Hungarian variant of Art Nouveau with elements of Indian and Syrian architecture and traditional Hungarian folk art. An important representative was Ödön Lechner, who was responsible for the Museum of Applied Arts, the Geological Museum and the Post Office Savings Bank in Budapest. | .jpg/150px-Museum_of_Applied_Arts_(Budapest).jpg) Hungarian Museum of Decorative Arts |
| 7 Darmstadt | Germany | In the 19th century, a garden and a landscape park were initially built on the Mathildenhöhe in Darmstadt. The Darmstadt artists' colony founded by Grand Duke Ernst Ludwig later added a number of Art Nouveau buildings. The aim of these artists was to create a contemporary living culture through the architecture. At first private villas were built, later apartment houses were built. In addition to the wedding tower and the exhibition hall, the ensemble on Mathildenhöhe also includes a Russian chapel as well as a number of sculptures and fountains. Also worth seeing is the museum in the former Ernst Ludwig House. |  Portal of the Ernst Ludwig House |
| 8 La Chaux-de-Fonds | Switzerland | The Swiss watchmaking town of La Chaux-de-Fonds in the canton of Neuchâtel was largely destroyed by a devastating fire in 1794. In the following years the city was systematically rebuilt. Watchmakers and sales representatives brought Art Nouveau to the village in the 19th century. Visible signs were colored windows, tiles, wrought iron railings and carved decorations in the new buildings. One of the teachers at the art school in La Chaux-de-Fonds was named Charles L´Eplattenier, he developed with the style sapin (Fir style) his own Art Nouveau direction, visible on buildings, applied arts, clock covers, etc. One of his most famous students was Charles-Eduoard Jeanneret, the later Le Corbusier. |  crematorium |
| 9 Havana | Cuba | Art Nouveau in Havana is more or less limited to residential buildings. Most of them were created by architects who left their homeland on the Iberian Peninsula and sought their fortune on the Caribbean island of Cuba. The art nouveau elements in Havana often have the task of decorating neoclassical facades. Often this was done with elements made of plaster of paris and concrete, which were prefabricated and then referred to as artificial stones and ornaments as "cast architecture". Art Nouveau elements are particularly found in interiors, in furniture, lamps, windows and decorations. |  Architecture Travel City Street Tourism Cuba |
| 10 Ljubljana | Slovenia | In the 19th In the 19th century, Ljubljana was still called Laibach and was a village in Austria-Hungary, but also the capital of the province of Carniola. When an earthquake destroyed this place in 1895, reconstruction began with the help of two city planners from Vienna. Camillo Sitte and Maks Fabiani began to build the new city quarter in the style of the Viennese secession. Traditional elements were used in a modern way. This style influenced not only the facades, but also the furnishings of the houses. Art Nouveau prevailed in both graphics and painting. | .jpg/150px-Ljubljana_(15125386931).jpg) Bank building |
| 11 Lake Como region Lombardy | Italy | The area around Lake Como was characterized by increasing industrialization at the end of the 19th / beginning of the 20th century, by jetties, holiday homes, villas and landscaped gardens. The style was inspired by classicism or adapted to the surrounding mountains. Now a new style was added: it was made in northern Italy Liberty called, and he borrowed his elements from the surrounding nature. Floral patterns mixed with romantic decorations. This style was found on the facades of the houses, in their interiors and also in the design of the tombs in the cemeteries. |  Salon in the Grand Hotel Varese |
| 12 Melilla | Spain | The old fortress walls in the North African city of Melilla began to open when the Spanish architect Enrique Nieto went from Barcelona to Melilla. In his environment he encouraged other architects and civil engineers to adopt Art Nouveau. This made Melilla one of the most important cities with more than 300 decorative Art Nouveau buildings. One of his most famous works is the former “La Reconquista” department store. In the course of his life, Nieto changed his style towards Art Deco and Classicism. |  EDIFICIO GENERAL PAREJA |
| 13 Nancy | France | In Nancy, under the influence of Émile Gallé, the artists' association “Ecole de Nancy” created objects from various materials such as glass, leather and ceramics. Craftsmanship was combined with industrial production methods. The artists took their inspiration from the growth of the plants, their leaves and flowers. Art Nouveau can also still be found in architecture today, with over 100 buildings from that time transferring the spirit of the Ecole de Nancy into the cityscape. Worth mentioning include the Museum of Fine Arts and the Villa Majorelle. |  Stained glass window "École de Nancy architecture" |
| 14 Oradea | Romania | Oradea (German Großwardein; Hungarian Nagyvárad) is a city in the extreme northwest of Romania, not far from the border with Hungary. The historic and multicultural city is likely to appeal to lovers of Austro-Hungarian architecture and Secession or Art Nouveau. Some of the historical monuments have not yet been renovated. A special feature are the palaces built around 1900, which have unique decorations, made of stucco, ceramic and iron. One example is the iron vines on the windows and balconies in Füchsl Castle, built in 1902. | _-_piaţa_Unirii.JPG/150px-Oradea_(Nagyvárad)_-_piaţa_Unirii.JPG) Hotel Vulturul Negru ("Black Eagle") |
| 15 Reus | Spain | The Catalonian city Reus is just a few kilometers away from the Costa Daurada. It is known as the birth town of Antoni Gaudí, probably the most important architect of the Modernism. Many Catalan cities have a building designed by the architect of the Sagrada Familia designed. In his hometown, of all places, he left no building. Nevertheless: he was not forgotten here either. With the Gaudi Center, a three-story museum building was dedicated to him. Anyone looking for Art Nouveau buildings will also find in Reus quite a few good examples. There are: Casa Navàs, Casa Rull, Casa Gasu, Institut Pere Mata and Casa Pinyol. |  Casa Anguera |
| 16 Riga | Latvia | The Latvian capital Riga is on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Around a third of all buildings in the city center are in Art Nouveau style. The architects of this new style came from Germany, Austria and Finland. However, local workers were preferred. A specialty in Latvian Art Nouveau is the "perpendicular Art Nouveau". But national romantic elements can also be found. |  Alberta iela 12 |
| 17 Subotica | Serbia | In the middle of the 19th century, Subotica was a small village in Austria-Hungary. The change of name to “Maria Theresiopolis” did not change that much either. That only happened in 1869, when Subotica was connected to the rail network. Within a few decades, the city became wealthy, and there was a real building boom, in which many young architects and engineers naturally took part. Among them were Ödön Lechner, Ferenc Raichl, the Vágo brothers and other Art Nouveau architects. Over 100 structures were erected within a few years, such as the Great Synagogue, the City Hall, the Raichl Castle and the bank building. |  town hall |
| 18 Szeged | Hungary | In 1879 a flood of the century destroyed the city of Szeged. When it was rebuilt, some Art Nouveau buildings were built. These include the Great Synagogue, the Reök Palace and the Gröf Palace. The city's Art Nouveau buildings differ in their details, for example on the facades, in their decorations, depending on the architects' preference for folklore or the taste of the client. |  Reök Palota, apartment house |
| 19 Terrassa | Spain | The Catalonian city of Terrassa developed into a center of the textile industry in the 19th century. During this economic boom, Art Nouveau was also used, mainly in industrial architecture. The economic crisis of the 1970s led to the closure of a large number of textile companies in Terrassa, and some of the most representative buildings were converted into museums, exhibition halls, offices and apartments. Currently, Terrassa has an industrial heritage unique in Catalonia, very attractive both tourist and cultural, showing firsthand the lifestyle of the city in the 19th and early 20th centuries. | ,_façana_del_pati.jpg/150px-109_Gran_Casino_del_Foment,_c._Font_Vella_78_(Terrassa),_façana_del_pati.jpg) Gran Casino |
| 20 Vienna | Austria | The Vienna Secession was an association of Viennese artists founded in 1897. The name Secession indicates that these artists deliberately rejected the then predominant concept of art. Most of the Viennese artists were painters, some of them worked in the Wiener Werkstättento reform the handicrafts. This failed thoroughly: as a result of the global economic crisis, the workshop went bankrupt in 1932. |  Exhibition house of the "Secession" |
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More art nouveau cities
The Council of Europe's cultural routes form a network in which the members work together. One of these members usually presides over it. If the network of cultural routes meets the requirements of the Council of Europe, it receives a certificate. This certification should be repeated every three years. In the meantime, individual members can leave the network, others can join. Even in the network Réseau Art Nouveau Network there were some changes, they should not be withheld here.
| name of the city | country | Remarks | picture |
|---|---|---|---|
| 21 Glasgow | United Kingdom | By the year 1890, Glasgow was a wealthy city from industrialization, but there were many social problems such as violence, prostitution, alcoholism and pollution. There have therefore been attempts to create a cultural environment in which ordinary people can find meaning in their lives. A starting point was the group of designers "The Four" with - Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Margaret and Frances Macdonald and Herbert MacNair. wanted to. Typical examples of the "Glasgow Style" were the Glasgow School of Art, the Willow Tearooms and the Scotland Street School Museum. A hidden gem of Glasgow, also designed by Mackintosh, is the Queen's Cross Church. |  Glasgow: School of Art |
| 22 Helsinki | Finland | The Finnish Art Nouveau is heavily dependent on the national romantic art of this epoch, which was influenced by the national epic Kalevala and contributed to national awareness. Examples of Art Nouveau architecture can be found in the residential buildings, especially in districts such as Katajanokka, Kruununhaka or Eira. Representative buildings such as the main train station, the National Museum and the Kallio Church were also built in the national romantic Art Nouveau style. |  Finland: National Museum |
| 23 Palermo | Italy | The “stile Liberty”, named after the English company Arthur Lasenby Der Liberty Ltd, developed differently in the south of the country than in the northern cities of Milan, Turin and Venice. The architect Ernesto Basile and the carpenter Vittorio Ducrot were responsible for the majority of the work; they encompassed the fields of architecture as well as industrial and decorative arts such as wrought iron, ceramics, glasswork, mosaics and furniture. The most important buildings are banks, insurance companies, the Teatro Biondo de Mineo and the Palazzo Ammirata de Rivas. |  Palermo-Villino Florio |
| 24 Tbilisi | Georgia | At the beginning of the 20th century, Georgia was under the rule of the Russian tsars. However, it was possible that Art Nouveau, known as "modern style", spread throughout Georgia. The modern elements such as wrought iron and cement have been adopted, while many local details can be found in the Art Nouveau buildings. Most of the buildings are apartment blocks, but there are also public buildings such as schools, banks, hospitals, industrial buildings, small shops, entertainment centers, theaters, and a cinema: the Apollo. The architect who best represents the movement is Simon Kldiashvili. |  Georgian State Institute for Theater and Film |
Web links
- Réseau Art Nouveau Network, Website of the Art Nouveau network (multilingual website, partly in German)
- Art Nouveau Association Bad Nauheim
- Link to cities
- Art Nouveau European Route
