The Mac literally personifies the distinctiveness of British modern Art Nouveau architecture. A Scot by birth, he devoted his whole life to making the art of his homeland famous. Usually, only the most significant masterpieces are exhibited at exhibitions in the Moscow Kremlin. These are works of legendary artists, sculptors and architects, recognized around the world.
Unusual exhibition, photo
In the rooms of the One-Pillar Chamber of the Patriarchal Palace, wooden chairs of different heights and styles appeared. Pictures with unusual plots hang on the walls.
Near them landscapes in a realistic style.
The contrast between modernity and timeless abstraction can be seen in every work of the Scottish master.
Thanks to the original approach of the creators of the exhibition, the exposition was placed in another real architectural monument, where the best exhibitions are held in the Kremlin. The one-pillar chamber, preserved from the 17th century, was specially chosen for the exhibition hall. The atmosphere of the exhibition center complements the work of the Mac.
British art in Russia
Charles Rennie Mackintosh, whose exhibition opened in Moscow, is an outstanding figure even for the British, who are used to all unusual things . The Tate Modern Gallery of Modern Art has hundreds of extraordinary paintings, sculptures, and decorative elements. And the inhabitants of Russia most often admire classical art, realistic style or antiquity. It is not unusual that the Macintosh exhibition in the Kremlin became a sensation for fans of painting and architecture.
Charles was born back in 1868, and died in 1928. During his life, he managed to see both national conflicts and a war of international proportions. Some moments of his life were reflected in the works of the author.
Representative of the art school, which is currently located in the industrial city of Glasgow, Mackintosh glorified Scotland for many years. The Art Nouveau style literally came to life under his drawing instruments. It has become updated and flirted with a new meaning.
He lived at the turn of the twentieth century and worked on the verge of a junction of several arts.
Modern in a new way
The Macintosh gave a second wind to Art Nouveau, which at the turn of the twentieth century began to outlive itself. A vocation artist, he successfully combined drawing with architecture.
When creating furniture projects or brushing along the canvas, the Macintosh, whose exhibition is so popular, was never afraid of new shapes, color combinations. And the materials that he chose for new creations made his every work absolutely unique. The main inspiration was geometric shapes.
Before Charles Mackintosh, contemporary art of that time had a completely different look. Having become popular at that time, the style of the architect is still popular today. The symbiosis of modernity and the classical school, experiments and traditionality is perfectly presented with the help of an exhibition in the Kremlin.
Who is this Mac?
In Scotland, the father of modernity is called Charles Rennie Mackintosh. The artist’s talent was noticed in high school, which he combined with evening classes at the Glasgow School of Art. For his outstanding abilities, Charles received an additional scholarship, which gave him the opportunity to visit Italy and France. In these countries, he contemplated masterpieces of architecture, monuments, paintings. Returning to his native Scotland, Mackintosh decided what he wants from life, and began to realize his dream.
He did not hesitate to work as a simple draftsman at a local architectural firm, in which he later became the owner. Already in 1893, Charles’s first amazing project appeared, the Glasgow Herald Tower. Charles married a fellow student at an art school and lived a happy life with her.
Despite the fact that Europe accepted his work with enthusiasm, in the conservative Great Britain the architect's courage was not appreciated.
The genius was a member of a group of artists called The Four. The group was created during the student years of Charles. It included his friend Herbert McNair, as well as two sisters, Francis and Margaret MacDonald. Together, they founded a completely new design style called Glasgow Style.
Now the Charles Rennie Mackintosh exhibition is already a brand known around the world.
Macintoshism
Charles Macintosh tried to do things his own way. He quickly developed that style, which was difficult to attribute to any other. At first, critics called the working method “inside out”, and then dubbed “Macintoshism”.
All the buildings that Charles designed must have existed in harmony with the interior decoration, with furniture. The house itself and the objects in it became one organism.
His work is very functional, no frills, beautiful elegant form. It was Charles Mackintosh, whose exhibition is now also accessible to the Russian public, that led Art Nouveau along a new constructive path, with strict mathematically accurate lines and an unusual construction.
Architect's work
In Glasgow, several Macintosh designs were built. His work is easy to recognize. In addition, they successfully complement the local look.
The most famous Macintosh buildings:
- Hill House private house building;
- Macintosh native art school;
- local school in Glasgow;
- tea willow rooms;
- Queens Cross Church.
These buildings are somewhat reminiscent of castles. Charles specifically focused on such a model to emphasize the belonging of architecture to the traditions of Scotland.
The Macintosh was not afraid to mix steel, glass, concrete in its buildings.
Furniture from the designer
The boundless imagination of the architect and artist did not allow to stop there.
He tried himself in various forms of art. After successful architectural decisions, the city building Macintosh set to furniture. Macintosh exhibition in the Kremlin also presented samples of his work to the court of Russian viewers.
Each piece of furniture made by the designer is unique. The second one does not exist. Charles decorated his chairs and tables with silver, framed them in metals, covered with enamel, or inserted colored glass in them.
Design by genius
In addition to furniture and house design, he created sketches for panels, textiles, windows, door stained glass, fireplaces and even watches. To decorate the walls in his houses, he came up with stencils, and this became his hallmark. Basically, everything was decorated with roses, which symbolized the author himself.
Few people know that Charles Mackintosh painted street posters and posters. He worked on the design for tickets, advertising and so on.
The designer came up with his own corporate font. Each letter deduced by him is also considered a work of art.
Drawings
Macintosh did not immediately come to ordinary painting. In his youth, he was more interested in the voluminous figures that he could erect.
In old age, he first changed the drawing pen to a brush. In his declining years, Charles actively painted landscapes, still lifes. He did all this with watercolors, in his personal, easily recognizable style.
The paintings of the architect are especially valuable, since there were not so many of them, and each of his paintings is considered to be the property of Scotland and Great Britain as a whole.
What to see at the exhibition?
Representatives of the museum in Glasgow could not translate the Macintosh architectural masterpieces and limited themselves to smaller works, but no less large-scale ones.
The main exhibits at the exhibition are:
- Macintosh paintings, watercolor landscapes from Scotland;
- unique furniture in the form of chairs and tables;
- mirrors;
- interior samples;
- stencils with eminent copyright font;
- lamps.
The highlight of the brought collection was the interior elements that Mackintosh made to order for individuals from Glasgow and nearby villages. In this room there is a table, an armchair and even a mirror designed according to its design. All together creates a composition, as the author indicated in his drawing. Several types of furniture from the Chinese-style tea room were also brought to Russia.
Without sustained strict sequence, designed furniture loses its artistic value as an art object. Therefore, when the Macintosh exhibition was being created in the Kremlin, visitors from Scotland carefully advised their Russian colleagues.
Unfortunately, some of the items that were supposed to be on display were damaged during the fire. In Glasgow, a Macintosh creation, an art school, caught fire. His native alma mater. Representatives of the school were supposed to transfer some copies of the works of Charles Rennie Mackintosh to an exhibition in the Kremlin Museum, but could not because of the tragedy.
Having learned about this, representatives of the exhibition in Moscow expressed their sympathy and hope that the school will be able to recover soon, and will also continue to cooperate with their intermediaries in the future.
The Patriarchal Palace, or rather its One-pillar chamber, which hosted the exhibition at a party, is confident in its success. This show was programmed for the entire series of exhibitions that are held in Kremlin museums in Moscow. Exhibition organizers continue to implement their plan. They strive to introduce Muscovites and visitors to the most prominent and brightest representatives of the world of contemporary art and the past century.
The one-pillar chamber, after many attempts, was finally restored in 2005. Then it was decided for the first time to turn it into an exhibition hall. Only the best exhibitions in Moscow could get there.
The Chamber is a genuine monument of civil architecture that has come down to us from the depths of the seventeenth century. During the celebration of the 200th anniversary of the existence of Kremlin museums, this building housed a gala exhibition in honor of the Russian emperors and their Armory.
The employees of the Russian museum were very pleased with the opportunity to post Macintosh work within their walls. Macintosh exhibition in the Kremlin began its work.