The Rudolfinum is a building in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

, Czech Republic. It is designed in the

neo-renaissance Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range ...

style and is situated on

Jan Palach Square Jan Palach Square ( cs, Náměstí Jana Palacha) is a town square in the Old Town of Prague. It is located on right bank of the Vltava River next to the former Jewish Quarter. Buildings and structures The western side of the square is adjacen ...

on the bank of the river

Vltava Vltava ( , ; german: Moldau ) is the longest river in the Czech Republic, running southeast along the Bohemian Forest and then north across Bohemia, through Český Krumlov, České Budějovice and Prague, and finally merging with the Labe at ...

. Since its opening in 1885, it has been associated with music and art. Currently, the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra and Galerie Rudolfinum are based in the building. Its largest music auditorium, Dvořák Hall, is one of the main venues of the

Prague Spring International Music Festival The Prague Spring International Music Festival ( cs, Mezinárodní hudební festival Pražské jaro, commonly cs, Pražské jaro, Prague Spring) is a classical music festival held every year in Prague, Czech Republic, with symphony orchestras an ...

and is noted for its excellent acoustics.

Uses

The Rudolfinum has been the home of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra since 1946 and is one of the main venues of the

held each year in May and June. The building was designed by architect

Josef Zítek Josef von Zítek (18321909) was a Czech architect best known for two Neo-Renaissance landmarks in Prague, the National Theatre and the Rudolfinum.Josef Schulz, and was opened on 8 February 1885. It is named in honour of

Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria en, Rudolph Francis Charles Joseph , caption = Rudolf in 1887 , spouse = , issue = Elisabeth Marie, Princess Otto of Windisch-Graetz , house = Habsburg-Lorraine , father = Franz Joseph I of Austria , mother ...

, who presided over the opening. Between 1919 and 1939, the building was used as the seat of the Czechoslovak parliament. The Rudolfinum's Dvořák Hall is one of the oldest concert halls in Europe. On 4 January 1896,

Antonín Dvořák Antonín Leopold Dvořák ( ; ; 8 September 1841 – 1 May 1904) was a Czech composer. Dvořák frequently employed rhythms and other aspects of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia, following the Romantic-era nationalist example ...

himself conducted the Czech Philharmonic in the hall in its first ever concert. During the

First Czechoslovak Republic The First Czechoslovak Republic ( cs, První československá republika, sk, Prvá česko-slovenská republika), often colloquially referred to as the First Republic ( cs, První republika, Slovak: ''Prvá republika''), was the first Czechoslo ...

, the building served as the seat of the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourbon R ...

. The venue was the location of the recording of Nicola Benedetti's 2010 album ''Tchaikovsky & Bruch: Violin Concertos''.

Galerie Rudolfinum

The building also contains the Galerie Rudolfinum, an

art gallery An art gallery is a room or a building in which visual art is displayed. In Western cultures from the mid-15th century, a gallery was any long, narrow covered passage along a wall, first used in the sense of a place for art in the 1590s. The lon ...

that focuses mainly on

contemporary art Contemporary art is the art of today, produced in the second half of the 20th century or in the 21st century. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is a dynamic ...

. It opened on 1 January 1994 and is a non-profit institution directed and financed by the

Czech Ministry of Culture The Ministry of Culture (Czech language: ''Ministerstvo kultury České republiky'') of the Czech Republic was established in 1969. See also *Ministry of Culture External links * Czech Republic Czech Republic Culture Ministry of Cult ...

. It is located at the back of the Rudolfinum. Galerie Rudolfinum has no collection of its own, and runs on the

Kunsthalle A kunsthalle is a facility that mounts temporary art exhibitions, similar to an art gallery. It is distinct from an art museum by not having a permanent collection. In the German-speaking regions of Europe, ''Kunsthallen'' are often operated by ...

principle, hosting a series of temporary exhibitions. It has around 1,500 square metres of exhibition space. The gallery director is Petr Nedoma. Major exhibitions have included:

Cathy de Monchaux Cathy de Monchaux (born 1960) is a British sculptor. Early life and education Born in London, de Monchaux earned her BA at the Camberwell School of Art (1980–1983) and an MA at Goldsmiths College, University of London (1985–1987). Style ...

(1997);

František Drtikol František Drtikol (3 March 1883 – 13 January 1961) was a Czech photographer known for his nudes and portraits. Life and work Drtikol was born in Příbram into a merchant family, the younger of three children, brother of sisters, Ema and M ...

– ''Photographer, Painter, Mystic'' (1998);

Cindy Sherman Cynthia Morris Sherman (born January 19, 1954) is an American artist whose work consists primarily of photographic self-portraits, depicting herself in many different contexts and as various imagined characters. Her breakthrough work is often co ...

: ''Retrospective'' (1998); Jürgen Klauke: ''Side Effect'' (1998); ''Czech Photography 1840–1950'', (2004); Annelies Štrba (2005);

Neo Rauch Neo Rauch (born 18 April 1960, in Leipzig, East Germany; ) is a German artist whose paintings mine the intersection of his personal history with the politics of industrial alienation. His work reflects the influence of socialist realism, and owe ...

: ''Neue Rollen'' (2007); ''Uncertain States of America'' (2007–2008); Gottfried Helnwein: ''Angels Sleeping'' (2008);

Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore the relationsh ...

: ''Motion Pictures'' (2009); Shirana Shahbazi: ''Then Again'' (2012);

Jake and Dinos Chapman Iakovos "Jake" Chapman (born 1966) and Konstantinos "Dinos" Chapman (born 1962) are British visual artists, often known as the Chapman Brothers. Their subject matter tries to be deliberately shocking, including, in 2008, a series of works that ...

: ''The Blind Leading the Blind'' (2013);

Ana Mendieta Ana Mendieta (November 18, 1948 – September 8, 1985) was a Cuban-American performance artist, sculptor, painter and video artist who is best known for her "earth-body" artwork. Born in Havana, Mendieta left for the United States in 1961. Ear ...

: ''Traces'' (2014);

Mat Collishaw Matthew "Mat" Collishaw Hon. FRPS (born 6 January 1966) is an English artist based in London. Collishaw's work uses photography and video. His best known work is ''Bullet Hole'' (1988), which is a closeup photo of what appears to be a bull ...

: ''Standing Water'' (2018);

Arthur Jafa Arthur Jafa (; born Arthur Jafa Fielder, November 30, 1960) is an American video artist and cinematographer. Early life and education Jafa was born on November 30, 1960 in Tupelo, Mississippi and raised in Clarksdale, Mississippi which was hig ...

: ''A Series of Utterly Improbable, Yet Extraordinary Renditions'' (2019);

David Claerbout David Claerbout (born 1969, Kortrijk, Belgium) is a Belgian artist. His work combines elements of still photography and the moving image. Early life and education Claerbout studied at Nationaal Hoger Instituut voor Schone Kunsten, Antwerp from ...

: ''Olympia'' (2020).

Gallery

File:Rudolfinum concert hall.jpg, Dvořák Hall File:Praha Rudolfinum isometric.jpg, Rudolfinum as seen from

Letná Letná is a hill overlooking Prague historic centre and Vltava River just besides Prague Castle. It neighbours Stromovka, the largest park in Prague. The hill belongs to Holešovice and Bubeneč quarters of Prague 7 Prague 7 is a municipal d ...

File:Prague Autumn Penderecki.JPG,

Krzysztof Penderecki Krzysztof Eugeniusz Penderecki (; 23 November 1933 – 29 March 2020) was a Polish composer and conductor. His best known works include ''Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima'', Symphony No. 3, his '' St Luke Passion'', '' Polish Requiem'', ' ...

and the

Sinfonia Varsovia The Sinfonia Varsovia is an orchestra and a musical institution based in Warsaw, Poland. It was founded in 1984 by Yehudi Menuhin, Waldemar Dąbrowski and Franciszek Wybrańczyk, as a successor to the Polish Chamber Orchestra. Since 2003 the orche ...

, rehearsal. Prague Autumn International Music Festival 2008. File:Rudolfinum v noci.jpg, Rudolfinum by night

References

External links

*
Galerie Rudolfinum
– Official website of Galerie Rudolfinum
Publications
{{Authority control Music venues in Prague Concert halls in the Czech Republic Event venues established in 1885 Renaissance Revival architecture in the Czech Republic National Cultural Monuments of the Czech Republic Art museums and galleries in the Czech Republic Art museums established in 1994 1994 establishments in the Czech Republic