From 6 May to 17 October 2010 the Czech public and visitors to Prague will for the first time have the opportunity of viewing paintings, engravings, architectural plans, furniture, sculpture and porcelain of the Biedermeier era from the collections of the Prince von und zu Liechtenstein, supplemented by loans from Czech collections and archives.

Museums in Prague and elsewhere in the Czech Republic possess superb holdings from this period, including objects made in Vienna, with the emphasis lying in the field of design, as we would now call it. Nonetheless, in the Princely Collections it is painting of the very highest quality that predominates. Whereas the 2008 exhibition in Prague showcasing Czech Biedermeier was notable for the exceptional quality and originality of its three-dimensional objects, the present exhibition at Palais Waldstein will focus on painting.

Following the exhibitions at the LIECHTENSTEIN MUSEUM in Vienna and the Pushkin Museum in Moscow, this is the third large exhibition featuring holdings from the Princely Collections that were created in this important epoch of Viennese art history. In contrast to the two previous exhibitions, the Prague exhibition focuses more on objects which have a close connection to the Moravian castles: thus the detailed vedute of Ferdinand Runk illustrate their beauty in the Vormärz period, while plans from the Moravian and Viennese archives provide a historical overview of the major buildings and chateaux. Together with period furniture from these country seats at Valtice and Lednice, these further illuminate the style of Liechtensteins’ décor than has hitherto been possible.

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Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague