Life of Forms

Inspiration by nature in the history of applied art

The permanent exhibition of the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague aims to present a vibrant, multi-dimensional image of European applied arts from the Middle Ages to the 21st century. The core theme focuses on art in the motion of life.All things around us enter into human life, accompany it, and transform it both functionally and symbolically. Art and design, thus co-influence lifestyles and the scenarios and models of human behaviour.

C-120_021729_LziceMuseum of Decorative Arts In Prague

The unbridled spontaneity of nature

Since antiquity, and especially since the Enlightenment and pre-Romantic 18th century, nature has become the "true school" and a teacher of art.

47785_vaza_ulitaMuseum of Decorative Arts In Prague

Life-giving forces balancing extinction and death

In applied art, the chaotic tangles of shapes, characteristic of Rococo creations, and natural bizarreness, anticipating the themes of the modern aesthetic of ugliness, aroused admiration.

UPM_Art-Life_Sal_C_1Museum of Decorative Arts In Prague

Calm and order

Biedermeier relied on the natural beauty of the material and simple shapes.

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Harmony, balance, regularity

Biedermeier professed an ideal balance of proportions, regularity and harmony of shapes. He sought order and orderliness in nature. The main decorative element was the natural structure of the material.

Jardinière with glass inlay, c. 1900. AK & Cie, Vienna (c. 1900) by AK & CieMuseum of Decorative Arts In Prague

Mystical celebration of life

The demand for a return to nature affected the whole of society at the end of the 19th century. The shapes of plants and other organisms were admired for their living dynamism and perfection of form.

C-001_059454_Polibek_1Museum of Decorative Arts In Prague

Dynamics of movement

The Art Nouveau turn to life and nature also led to an artistic exploration of the dynamics of bodily movement. The body was understood as a part and product of nature, as a carrier of life's stirrings and energies.

Sideboard shown at the 1900 Paris World’s Fair exhibition (1900/1900) by Louis MajorelleMuseum of Decorative Arts In Prague

Louis Majorelle

came under the spell of the graceful vegetal forms of the Art Nouveau style.  The entire set of dinning room furniture was purchased by the Czech entrepreneur Slavoj Grégr straight from the 1900 World Exposition in Paris.

Coffee service with flat handles (1912/1919) by Pavel JanákMuseum of Decorative Arts In Prague

Czech Cubism

The distinctive style spilled over into architecture and applied arts only in Bohemia.

Jaroslav Horejc: Cone-shaped vase (1911) by Jaroslav Horejc (1886–1983)Museum of Decorative Arts In Prague

The impressiveness of geometric order

The structure of the crystal fulfilled the artists' idea of a spiritual form. Therefore, it directly inspired some cubist objects.

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Abstraction of forms

Real shapes are reduced to the form of characters.

C-014_020514_Miska_MetelakMuseum of Decorative Arts In Prague

Abstraction - the universal language of modernism

Artists in the fields of glass, jewellery and textiles worked with traditional materials in a manner close to sculpture or painting.

C-176_097089_sPohovka_HorakMuseum of Decorative Arts In Prague

Amorphous - deformation and extinction

The life of forms inevitably tends to transcend all clear contours and boundaries of forms, to deformation and extinction. Thus, in this kaleidoscope of the visual world, we also encounter the phenomenon of the formless, the amorphous.

Supervision: Helena Koenigsmarková
Exhibition concept, specialized guidance:
 Radim Vondráček
Concept

Curatorial expertise: team of curators of UPM
Exhibition design: 20YY Designers, Petr Bosák, Robert Jansa, Tomáš Varga, Adam Macháček, Jakub Jansa
Photos: Gabriel Urbánek, Ondřej Kocourek

More photos on the museum's website


The museum is open Wednesday to Sunday 10am - 6pm, Tuesday 10am - 8pm, closed on Mondays.
Admission 350 CZK, reduced admission 180 CZK (students, seniors). Tickets can also be purchased online.

Credits: All media
The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions (listed below) who have supplied the content.
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