The Veletržní Palace (Trade Fair Palace) is a huge Functionalist building dating from the 1920’s. It is in itself quite fascinating and worth a visit. This avant-garde edifice designed by the architects Oldřich Tyl and Josef Fuchs appears as a manifesto for modernity through its simplicity, its whiteness, its pure lines, the light bathing its rooms, particularly in the impressive central hall which opens on the eight upper floors. Its primary purpose was for exhibitions of industrial machines. After a fire had devastated the site in 1970 it was intended for demolition, but was eventually repaired and regained a new life, when it was chosen by the National Gallery to welcome its very rich collections of modern and contemporary art. They found here a worthy setting. All fields of creation are displayed: paintings and sculptures of course, but also architecture, design, furniture, photographs, stage design or graphic design.
A visit in the museum gives the opportunity for a fascinating journey through modernity, something you shouldn’t miss.
Among the most interesting works to see we should mention the French art collections of the 19th and 20th centuries. They result from the fruitful connections during the interwar period between the very new Czechoslovakia and France, and the interest of artists, collectors and Bohemian art historians for the Parisian creations at the time. Clever purchases, later completed by generous donations, have created this unique collection where you can admire works by some of the greatest French artists: Delacroix, Carpeaux, Rodin, Courbet, Monet, Pissaro, Gauguin, Cézanne, Picasso’s Paris works (the collection owns many of them), Derain, Dufy, Bourdelle…
Much less known on the international level, the 20th century Czech art is worth discovering and will certainly amaze you. The exhibition starts with the avant-garde work by František Kupka: the collection of the National Gallery enables to follow the steps of his creation, from his first paintings marked by symbolism all the way to his radical works full of geometrical abstraction. Czech cubism can be observed in all fields of creation and shows how much the artists were aware of the contemporary Parisian avant-garde. On the third floor, Czech art of the 1930’s to the 2000’s leads from modern art to contemporary art, from the 1930’s surrealists to kinetic art displays.
The second floor presents international works of the 20th century, there you can discover or rediscover G. Klimt, E. Schiele, J. Miró, A. Tàpies, J. Beuys, T. Cragg, C. Sherman…
Veletržní palác – Veletržní Palace
Dukelských hrdinů 47
Prague 7 - Holešovice
www.ngprague.cz
How to get there:
Tram 12, 14, 15, 17, stop “Veletržní”
Open every day except Mondays, from 10am to 6pm.
Information about fees: here
