"La bâilleuse" (1926) by Joseph Kutter; Credit: MNHA / Tom Lucas

The National Museum of History and Art (MNHA) will be exhibiting works representing the Secessionist art movement in Luxembourg, from 30 April to 22 December 2019.

Exactly 90 years ago, in 1929, Luxembourg held its second Salon de la Secession. To commemorate this important date in the history of Luxembourgish art, the MNHA has tapped into its reserves.

The creation of the Luxembourg Secessionist art movement dates back to 1926. The first Salon de la Secession in 1927 is still considered today one of the major events in the history of art in the Grand Duchy. It was inspired by older secessionist movements in Munich (1892), Vienna (1896) and Berlin (1897). Several Luxembourgish artists who studied in Munich broke away from nineteenth-century Academicism and Impressionism by focusing on Fauvism and Expressionism. They wanted to distance themselves from the Cercle Artistique de Luxembourg (C.A.L.), created in 1893.

To illustrate this demand for artistic renewal, the expressionist artist Joseph Kutter (1894-1941) drew the head of a woman portrayed with open mouth for the cover of the special issue "L'art des jeunes" of the magazine "Les Cahiers luxembourgeois de 1928", making this the true manifesto of the Secession.

However, the Secession did not represent a total break with tradition. In the beginning, it brought together nine artists, who did not all belong to modernist trends. Some continued to paint in a traditional way and seem to have joined the group for reasons of friendship rather than solely aesthetics. The nucleus was formed by the leader Joseph Kutter and the secretary Nico Klopp (1894-1930), but also by Claus Cito (1882-1965), Harry Rabinger (1895-1966) and Auguste Trémont (1892- 1980).

In total, they held three Secession Salons, in 1927, 1929 and 1930. They focused on painting and sculpture and, to a lesser extent, the decorative arts. The Secessionists did however meet again with the artists of C.A.L. - already at the Salon of 1930. Indeed, following the death of Nico Klopp, their movement was running out of steam and there was to be no fourth Salon.

Since some of the works exhibited at these fairs can be found in the MNHA's collections, the museum decided to complete this set with works that were closely related to the original selection. As such, this exhibition presents eight Secession artists present in the MNHA's collections. It highlights the different styles and temperaments that coexisted in this first avant-garde movement in the history of art in Luxembourg.

The exhibition is composed of forty works from six painters and two sculptors: Joseph Kutter; Nico Klopp; Claus Cito; Harry Rabinger; Auguste Trémont; Jean Schaack (1895-1959); Jean-Pierre "Jemp" Michels (1906-1989); Joseph Sünnen (1894-1969).

Both the MNHA and the Musée Dräi Eechelen will be open to the public during the following public holidays, from 10:00 - 18:00: Wednesday 1 May (May Day); Thursday 9 May (Europe Day); Thursday 30 May 2019 (Ascension Day).