The Slav Epic cycle of paintings by Czech Art-Nouveau artist Alfons Mucha will be exhibited at Moravsky Krumlov chateau in southern Moravia for at least five years until Prague will have a suitable venue for the monumental works of art, the Prague City Council decided.
The decision is yet to be confirmed by the City Assembly. If so, the Slav Epic cycle is to be exhibited at the chateau as of next summer.
The Slav Epic was displayed in Moravsky Krumlov chateau for decades in the past. The cycle, which has been listed among cultural heritage since 2010, definitely moved to Prague in 2012.The entire epic was last shown in Prague from 2012 to the end of 2016 at the National Gallery’s modern art venue at Veletržní palác.
The Slav Epic (Slovanská epopej) is a series of twenty monumental canvases (the largest measuring over 6 by 8 meters) depicting the history of the Slav people and civilization. Mucha conceived it as a monument for all the Slavonic peoples and he devoted the latter half of his artistic career to the realization of this work.
The first canvas in the series, The Slavs in Their Original Homeland, was finished in 1912 and the entire series was completed in 1926 with the final canvas, The Apotheosis of the Slavs, which celebrates the triumphant victory of all the Slavs whose homelands in 1918 finally became their very own.
