Albert Galleron - Atheneul Român project

The Romanian Athenaeum ( ro, Ateneul Român) is a

concert hall A concert hall is a cultural building with a stage that serves as a performance venue and an auditorium filled with seats. This list does not include other venues such as sports stadia, dramatic theatres or convention centres that may ...

in the center of Bucharest, Romania, and a landmark of the Romanian capital city. Opened in 1888, the ornate, domed, circular building is the city's most prestigious concert hall and home of the "George Enescu" Philharmonic and of the George Enescu Festival.

History

In 1865, cultural and scientific personalities such as Constantin Esarcu,

V. A. Urechia V. A. Urechia (most common version of Vasile Alexandrescu Urechia, ; born Vasile Alexandrescu and also known as Urechiă, Urechea, Ureche, Popovici-Ureche or Vasile Urechea-Alexandrescu; 15 February 1834 – 21 November 1901) was a Moldavian, ...

, and Nicolae Creţulescu founded the Romanian Atheneum Cultural Society. To serve its purposes, the Romanian Athenaeum, a building dedicated to art and science, would be erected in Bucharest. The building was designed by the

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

architect

Albert Galleron Albert may refer to: Companies * Albert (supermarket), a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic * Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands * Albert Market, a street market in The Gambia * Albert Productions, a record label * Albert C ...

, built on a property that had belonged to the

Văcărescu family The House of Văcărescu was a boyar family of Wallachia (now part of Romania). According to tradition, it is one of the oldest noble families in Wallachia. Notable members * Enache Văcărescu (1654–1714) grand treasurer of Wallachia (killed ...

and inaugurated in 1888, although work continued until 1897. A portion of the construction funds was raised by public subscription in a 28-year-long effort, of which the slogan is still remembered today: "Donate one '' leu'' for the ''Ateneu''!" (

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language ***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language **Romanian cuisine, traditional ...

''"Dați un leu pentru Ateneu!"''). On December 29, 1919, the Atheneum was the site of the conference of leading Romanians who voted to ratify the unification of

Bessarabia Bessarabia (; Gagauz: ''Besarabiya''; Romanian: ''Basarabia''; Ukrainian: ''Бессара́бія'') is a historical region in Eastern Europe, bounded by the Dniester river on the east and the Prut river on the west. About two thirds of Be ...

, Transylvania, and

Bukovina Bukovinagerman: Bukowina or ; hu, Bukovina; pl, Bukowina; ro, Bucovina; uk, Буковина, ; see also other languages. is a historical region, variously described as part of either Central or Eastern Europe (or both).Klaus Peter BergerT ...

with the Romanian Old Kingdom to constitute Greater Romania. Extensive reconstruction and restoration work has been conducted in 1992 by a Romanian construction company and restoration painter Silviu Petrescu, saving the building from collapse. The nine million Euro required were contributed in equal shares by the government and the Council of Europe Development Bank.

Building and facilities

The overall style is neoclassical, with some more

romantic Romantic may refer to: Genres and eras * The Romantic era, an artistic, literary, musical and intellectual movement of the 18th and 19th centuries ** Romantic music, of that era ** Romantic poetry, of that era ** Romanticism in science, of that e ...

touches. In front of the building there is a small park and a statue of Romanian poet

Mihai Eminescu Mihai Eminescu (; born Mihail Eminovici; 15 January 1850 – 15 June 1889) was a Romanian Romantic poet from Moldavia, novelist, and journalist, generally regarded as the most famous and influential Romanian poet. Eminescu was an active membe ...

. Inside, the ground floor hosts an ornate conference hall as large as the auditorium above; in the auditorium there are 600 seats in the stalls, the rest of the seats being placed in 52 loges. A

fresco Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaste ...

Costin Petrescu Costin Petrescu may refer to: * Costin Petrescu (musician) (born 1949), Romanian rock musician *Costin Petrescu (painter) Costin Petrescu (May 10, 1872 – October 15, 1954) was a Romanian painter. Born in Pitești, he moved to Bucharest in 189 ...

decorates the inside of the circular wall of the concert hall. Painted using the ''al fresco'' technique, the piece depicts the most important moments of Romanian history, starting with the conquest of Dacia by Roman emperor Trajan and ending with the realization of Greater Romania in 1918. Recognized as a symbol of Romanian culture, the building has been inscribed in 2007 on the list of the Label of European Heritage sites.Romanian Athenaeum awarded Label of European Heritage
Romania's Permanent Delegation to NATO

Gallery

File:Ateneul Roman binnenkant.jpg File:Flickr - fusion-of-horizons - Ateneul Român (4).jpg File:Ateneul Român - Interior Sala.jpg File:Ateneul Român stage.jpg File:Romanian Athenaeum in Bucharest Romania.jpg File:Ateneul Român Facade night.jpg

References

{{Authority control Athenaeum Music venues completed in 1888 Historic monuments in Bucharest 1865 establishments in Romania Tourist attractions in Bucharest Concert halls in Bucharest Calea Victoriei Dacia in art Neoclassical architecture in Romania

History

Building and facilities

Gallery

See also

References