Databáze uměleckých výstav v českých zemích 1820 – 1950

In 1940, the Mánes Fine Arts Association launched the exhibition Picture and Sculpture in the Home, continuing its thematic and popularizing shows that began in the late 1930s. Unlike earlier exhibitions such as Figures from Czech History and The Face of Prague, which were designed as comprehensive surveys, this exhibition specifically focused on the practical installation of artworks in domestic settings. The Association showcased drawings, paintings, and small sculptures created by its members, presented in an unconventional manner – as part of residential interiors. The primary goal was to educate visitors and refine their taste. As stated in their brief catalogue, the organizers aimed “to demonstrate how a painting or sculpture can animate everyday living spaces and to provide guidance on how to appropriately place artworks in the home. [Anonymous author 1940]

Architect Josef Grus approached the exhibition design with both traditional and innovative elements, hanging paintings on walls in the classical manner while simultaneously installing four residential rooms in the Mánes exhibition halls. These were furnished by the companies R. Osolsobě, J. Návratil, and V. Hořejš, with interior accessories from Krásná jizba (Beautiful Room), Topič Salon, and the AKA company. Grus employed contrasts in his installation, combining functionalist furnishings with historicizing furniture. Some some paintings – notably Václav Špála's Bouquet – were presented in antique frames. The artworks thus acquired an atypical context within the gallery space, and as a reviewer signed with the initials J. V. wrote in Světozor, they did not function as museum exhibits but " as something that makes a dwelling into a home, that weaves intimacy into the walls of a room, that does not suppress practicality but rather transforms it into coziness." [J. V. 1940, p. 494]

In addition to Václav Špála, artists represented by larger collections of works included Vincenc Beneš, Vladimír Sychra, and Miloslav Holý. Because of the intended domestic setting for these pictures, most of them were depictions of natural motifs, floral and fruit still lifes, and landscapes.

The sculptors – Karel Dvořák, Zdenka Schwarzerová, and Jan Kavan – primarily exhibited portraits and female torsos. In contrast, Emil Filla presented his cubist bronze plaques from the cycle Battles and Struggles, which he created in response to the oppressive atmosphere of the late 1930s. The plaques depicting combating animals, Hercules, and Theseus, were first presented by Filla in his solo exhibition in 1938. Unlike the other sculpturers, which featured lighter themes, Filla's bronzes struck a discordant note, described by art critic Adolf Veselý as "obscure and convulsive" [Veselý 1940, p. 139].

However, the reviews focused less on the exhibited works than on the installation of residential interiors. While Grus's solution was generally considered inventive, some authors expressed disappointment in the execution of details. The catalogue was also criticized for omitting the names of architects, including Josef Grus, and for lacking a more substantial text that would have provided deeper reflection on interior decoration.

Picture and Sculpture in the Home, marked as number I in the catalogue, was intended to be the Mánes Association's first exhibition to focus on the home. Many reviewers therefore overlooked minor shortcomings and noted efforts to elaborate on the topic in subsequent years. However, due to the war, the Mánes Association never realized a follow-up show. The only exception was its collaboration with the Agricultural Union in the 1941 exhibition Flowers-Fruit-Vegetables.

As a pre-Christmas sale exhibition, Picture and Sculpture in the Home occupies a specific place within the context of the Mánes Association's exhibition policy. Nevertheless, it aligns with contemporary developments. At the turn of the 1940s, functionalism underwent a transformation that brought about a growing interest in domestic culture, actual living conditions, and individualized aesthetic demands. The Topič Salon also held exhibitions devoted to interior design, and similar shows were organized by the creative group around the Union of Czech Work and Architecture magazine at the beginning of the war. In this context, the exhibition Picture and Sculpture in the Home can also be perceived as a reflection of new relationships between architecture and art and the emerging late modernism.

Magdalena Dědičová

Works Cited

Anonymous author 1940: Anonymous author, Obraz a socha v bytě I. (exh. cat., SVU Mánes), Praha 1940, n. pag.

J. V. 1940: J. V. Mezi výstavou a svépomocnou akcí, Světozor XXXX, 1940, no. 43, 25. 10., p. 494

Veselý 1940: Ad. [Adolf] Veselý, Výtvarné umění, Pražský spolek „Mánes“…, Zvon XXXXI, 1940, no. 10, 20. 11., pp. 139–140

Further Reading

Od, Obraz a socha v Bytě, Lidové noviny XXXXVIII, 1940, no. 495, 29. 9., p. 7

Hana Rousová (ed.), Konec avantgardy? Od mnichovské dohody ke komunistickému převratu, Řevnice 2011

Jaromír Zemina, Emil Filla sochař, práce z let 1913–1938 (exh. cat., Severočeská galerie výtvarného umění), Litoměřice 2002

Archival Sources

Prague City Archives, fonds Spolek výtvarných umělců Mánes no. 1349, Výstavní činnost, Obraz a socha v bytě, 1940, no. 4260 [Mánes Fine Arts Association no. 1349, Exhibitions, Picture and Sculpture in the Home, 1940, no. 4260]

Archive of the National Gallery in Prague, Collection Varia, Books of clippings related to the Mánes Fine Arts Association, 1933–1950, acc. no. 4202, 87 pieces, VF

Anonym, Výstava „Obraz a socha v bytě“ v „Mánesu“ je prodloužena…, Polední list XIV, 1940, no. 321, 20. 11., p. 2

Anonym, Výstava „Obraz a socha v bytě“ v „Mánesu“ bude zahájena…, Polední list XIV, 1940, no. 282, 12. 10., p. 2

Anonym, V Mánesu byla právě zahájena…, Národní listy LXXX, 1940, no. 282, 16.10., p. 3