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i Prague The National Gallery in Prague is a state organisation administering the largest art collection in the Czech Republic. In 1796 a group of patriotic representatives of the Czech aristocracy and several intellectuals from the enlightened bourgeoisie initiated the founding of the Society of Patriotic Friends of Art. The same year the Society began building the Gallery in the Černínský Palace with the aim of encouraging public interest in art and preventing the export of works of art from the country. The Society of Patriotic Friends was also present at the birth of the Academy in 1799, which was to provide quality art education for Czech students that, until then, had been studying in Vienna or Munich. Until 1835 the Picture Gallery didn’t own any of its works, it merely exhibited pictures on loan. Count František Josef Šternberk, who later became the chairman of the Society, was the Gallery’s key personage by providing the exposition with the majority of its pictures. As mentioned above, the Gallery began building its own collection in 1835, also with the help of generous patrons. In 1902 another institution was added to the Gallery – the Modern Gallery of the Kingdom of Bohemian, which later became the basis for the collection of 20th century Czech art. Between 1919 and 1939 the Gallery’s director was the art historian and theoretician Vincenc Kramář, whose prescient acquisitions greatly enhanced the artistic level of the collection of medieval and modern art. The collection existed under the title of the Picture Gallery of the Society of Patriotic Friends of Art until 1937, when it was placed into the hands of the state and renamed as the State Collection of Art and since 1949 we have known it as the National Gallery In Prague. The National Gallery in Prague is a research organisation whose main aim is to carry out fundamental and applied research and experimental development and to disseminate its results by means of scientific publications, exhibitions, tutorials, etc. The collections are divided into five themes: Modern and Contemporary Art, Old Masters, Oriental Art, Prints and Drawings and 19th Century Art. The National Gallery exhibits its collection in several important historical buildings in Prague and two chateaus outside Prague. St. Agnes’ Convent was established as a convent for Poor Clares in the first half of the 13th century. At the time it was an important spiritual centre and burial ground for the Přemyslid dynasty. After Princess Agnes’s death its importance waned. In the 16th century the Poor Clares were replaced by the Dominicans for several decades and then the original inhabitants of the convent were forcibly returned, though they were not able to halt the ongoing deterioration of the buildings. In 1782 the convent was abolished and used as workshops and stores. Since 1963 it has been restored for the needs of the National Gallery and now you can enjoy the exposition of Mediaeval and Early Renaissance Art. It has partial disabled access. The closest Metro station is on line A Staroměstská or line B Náměstí Republiky. Sternberg Palace on Hradčanské Square is an important Baroque building from the turn of the 17th and 18th century built at the request of Count Václav Vojtěch of Šternberk and his wife Klára of Maltzan. The Society of Patriotic Friends of Art bought the palace for exhibitions in 1811 and it has been open to the public since 1814. Later the building had several owners and has been used by the National Gallery since 1946. Currently you can see an exhibition entitled European Art from the Classical Era to the Close of the Baroque. Among the paintings on display is one of the most famous European paintings the Feast of the Rose Gardens by Albrecht Dürer. The closest Metro station is Malostranská on line A. Schwarzenberg Palace is an early renaissance building on Hradčanské Square. It was built in the mid 16th century. It originally belonged to the Lobkowicz family and later had various owners until the Schwarzenberg family inherited it at the start of the 18th century. The National Gallery has owned it since 2002 and has its permanent exhibition Baroque in Bohemia housed here. Following its reconstruction an extraordinary
space arose in the garret, where those interested in military history and weapons can view a true treat – an exhibition of the most valuable historical weapons from the Institute of Military History collection called The Imperial Armoury. The closest Metro station is Malostranská on line A. Salma Palace is a Classicist building built directly onto the Schwarzenberg Palace. It arose at the start of the 19th century at the behest of William Florentan, the Prince of Sal-Salm. Since 2011 the National Gallery has used the space for temporary exhibitions. Kinský Palace was built from 1775 – 1765 on today’s Old Town Square on a plot of three houses with early medieval foundations. In the 19th century it was given a Classicist renewal and has been administered by the National Gallery since 1949. The extensive collection entitled Art of the Old World covers seven thousand years of artistic development and has a thousand cultural treasures from the old world – Asia, Europe and Northern Africa. The best way to get to Kinský Palace is from Metro A Staroměstská. The Functionalist Veletržní Palace in Prague 7 – Holešovice has an exceptional collection of Art of the 20th and 21st Centuries. The closest metro stations are Vltavská and Nádraží Holešovice, both on line C. The Waldstein Riding School can be found in the garden of the complex of an early Baroque palace i Prague built for Albrecht of Waldstein. The National Gallery holds short-term exhibitions here. The Riding School is near the Malostranská Metro station A. The National Gallery also exhibits part of its collections in buildings outside of Prague. The first is Fryštát Chateau in the Moravian-Silesian Region, where you can see the 19th Century Art exhibition. The other is the chateau at Žďár nad Sázavou in the Vysočina Region, where visitors can see a representative exposition of Baroque Painting and Sculpture from the National Gallery in Prague collections. www . ngprague.cz The Veletržní Palace is architecturally unique. It is one of the first and also the largest functionalist buildings in Prague. Veletržní Palace was built for the company Prague Trade Fairs from 1925 to 1928 using the plans of Josef Fuks and Oldřich Tyl. The extensive building has eight above-ground floors and two underground floors. Under the entrance hall which gives access to all floors and is bordered by galleries, there is a cinema. The upper storeys, which have an unusual view of Prague, used to house a restaurant and cafe. In 1928 the famous modern architect Le Corbusier visited Prague and poured praise and admiration on the building. Veletržní Palace was used for organising trade fairs until the 1950’s. It then became the main office of businesses involved in foreign trade. On 14 August 1974 there was a fire and the monumental building almost burnt to the ground. For some time demolition was considered, however at the end of the 1970’s the National Gallery acquired Veletržní Palace with the aim of creating a permanent exhibition of modern art. After a long and costly reconstruction, which was completed in 1995, the palace was opened to the public and the collection of modern and contemporary art was put on display. The exposition also includes examples of architecture, furniture, design, fashion and crafts from the 19th – 21st century. Currently Veletržní Palace is hosting Alfons Mucha’s Slav Epic a cycle of large format paintings.
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