The exhibition “The Mysticism of Baroque Sculpture: Johann Georg Pinsel and Other 18th-century Lviv Masters” is on display in the exhibition hall of the Palace Stables of the Rundāle Palace Museum from 6 July to 31 August. The exhibition features 20 wooden sculptures by the outstanding late Baroque sculptor Johann Georg Pinsel (c. 1720?–1761?), as well as other masters from the Lviv region.
All the works on display are from the collection of Borys Voznytsky Lviv National Art Gallery and were on display until the end of May at the National Museum Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania in Vilnius. As it is risky to return the sculptures to Lviv in war conditions, the Rundāle Palace Museum proposed to temporarily house them in its premises, giving the residents of Latvia and visitors from abroad the opportunity to get to know an important part of Ukraine’s cultural heritage.
“Russia’s war in Ukraine is directed against the existence of Ukraine as an independent state, denying the right of the Ukrainian nation to exist and the existence of Ukrainian culture. The deliberate destruction of churches in Ukraine, the destruction and looting of museums, the shooting of the monument of Taras Shevchenko show that cultural heritage can become a target in war. The Latvian cultural sector, including heritage institutions and professionals, demonstrates a high degree of solidarity with its colleagues in Ukraine. The exhibition of sculptures by Lviv Baroque masters at Rundāle Palace is also an important part of this process,” highlights Nauris Puntulis, Minister of Culture.
The exhibition at the Rundāle Palace Museum features 20 impressive, mostly gilded wood sculptures from the 18th century. The mysterious works of the great sculptor Johann Georg Pinsel are rightly considered the pinnacle of late Baroque sculpture in the Lviv region. Alongside Pinsel’s works, the exhibition will also feature works by other famous 18th century masters, such as Antoni Osiński, Jan Obrocki and Franciszek Oleński, as well as several unknown masters who reflect the drama and mystique of the Lviv region’s Baroque sculpture. These sculptures were once made for church installations.
During the Soviet occupation, many Catholic churches in Western Ukraine were closed, vandalised and even demolished, and their art treasures looted or destroyed. What was saved and what can be seen in the exhibition is the merit of the courageous staff of Ukrainian museums. Like the Ukrainian museologist Borys Voznytsky and his colleagues, the specialists of the Rundāle Palace Museum also made expeditions to abandoned Latvian churches during the Soviet occupation, bringing to the museum art objects that were otherwise doomed to destruction.
The exhibition at the Rundāle Palace Museum has been supported by the State Culture Capital Foundation and the Ministry of Culture.
Rundāle Palace is easily accessible by direct bus from Riga; the bus runs twice a day – at 9.20 and 12.20 from Riga International Bus Station, and back from Rundāle Palace towards Riga – at 14.05 and 17.10.
Information about the creators:
Exhibition concept: Vydas Dolinskas, Gintarė Tadarovska, Marijus Uzorka, (Lithuania), Taras Voznyak (Ukraine). Curators and coordinators of the exhibition: Igor Khomyn, Victor Kushnirenko, Borys Shengera (Ukraine), Gintarė Tadarovska, Marijus Uzorka and Dalius Avižinis (Lithuania).
The exhibition was adapted for the Rundāle Palace Museum by Dr. art. Laura Lūse, Dr. art. Baiba Vanaga, Lauma Lancmane, Līga Beļakiene. The architecture and technical design of the exhibition were created by the staff of the Rundāle Palace Museum.
