Among their first members: the architects Josef Hoffmann and Josef Maria Olbrich, the painters Josef Engelhart, Carl Moll, Koloman Moser and Alfred Roller who had studied architecture as well as painting. But when fierce differences arose between established and young artists concerning the delegations to exhibitions in Dresden and Munich, the artists around Gustav Klimt finally declared their secession on 24 May. The new association should exist as a kind of club within the “Genossenschaft bildender Künstler Wiens.” Since 1861 the Genossenschaft (abbreviated to ‘Künstlerhaus’) had been the official representation with its own exhibition house at the Karlsplatz in Vienna. Gustav Klimt, 35 years old, was elected as president, 85 year old artist Rudolf von Alt, who had always been an advocate of the young, was elected Honorary President. On 3 Aprilthe constituting assembly of the new association was held. This was the beginning of the Vienna Secession.
On 27 March 1897 art critic Ludwig Hevesi wrote enthusiastically: “The art city of Vienna, this gigantic small town, will now finally become a Big-Vienna, a true New-Vienna.” He had heard that a group of young artists was to found the Association of Visual Artists (Vereinigung Bildender Künstler Österreichs).
0 kommentar(er)
