News | January 26, 2015

Four paintings from the collection of the Archbishop of Olomouc Prečan that after 1948 the Communist regime confiscated, taken over in Olomouc Museum of Art in the process of property settlement between church and state representatives Olomouc Archbishopric. Oil paintings, which originally adorned Prečanovu residence at Holy Hill, but will remain in the depository of the museum, which is archbishopric lend long. Olomouc Museum of Art and the archbishopric to continue long exemplary cooperation, which demonstrates that it is possible to question the church restitution to avoid tensions and misunderstandings.

Recovered oil paintings from the 17th and 18th centuries, even for one but have so far failed to locate a particular author. Portrait of a man and woman effigy of 1612, whose author is probably the Silesian painter, Archbishop Prečan bought in 1938 from an antique dealer Prostejov Seidl. Small, about 40×30 cm large format portraits by the art historian Helen Match at the beginning of the 17th century is very popular. “Luxury clothing portrayed While this suggests that it is a noble couple, but their absence does not crests closer identification,” said head of the collection and the Exhibition Department of Olomouc Museum of Art.

The other two paintings measuring about 80×60 cm show roughly three-year girl. Their clothing indicates the aristocratic or well situated patrician origins. “Both girls are Portrayal in full figure. The first one is holding a small devotional image to the dates of 1773 and the figure of a hermit, probably St. Anthony the Great, the second is in the hands of the revered image of the miraculous image of Christ the Saviour in Chrudim, “explained Zápalková portraits that can be associated with a specific event, such as healing or visiting a particular shrine.

The actual transmission of images was rather symbolic – Archbishopric does lend paintings museum. “We consider it important that the valuable collections archbishopric serve the general public. A collaboration with the Museum of Art is the best option to achieve this, “said the Vicar General of the Archbishopric of Olomouc, Mons. Josef Nuzík.

Olomouc Museum of Art on church collections conceptually and has to take care of the Archdiocesan Museum in Olomouc and Kromeriz. “Contractually based co museums and archbishopric, hence the specific parishes, works on a simple, but mutually beneficial basis. On the one hand, a church which has a valuable art treasures, and on the other hand, our institution that objects from church collections manages exhibits and professionally evaluates, “said museum director Michal Soukup. Evidence of the functionality of this model is, according to him the existence of both archdiocesan museum. “His meaningfulness but mainly confirm tens of thousands of satisfied visitors. Indeed, only Olomouc Archdiocesan Museum from 2006 was viewed by more than half a million people, “he added.

One consequence of museum visits, according to him may be evidence that the church for hundreds of years not only cares about the spiritual dimension of life, but also of cultural values, which can without exaggeration be described as our national treasure. “I dare say that even now we can realize so called. Cooperative model of coexistence of churches and religious societies and State, which seeks to fulfill the current Minister of Culture Daniel Herman,” said the director of the Museum of Art Olomouc, referring to a recent interview for the magazine minister Christnet .com, where its targets for the relationship between church and state was characterized as follows: “the standard of the European model of coexistence churches and religious communities and the state is the so-called cooperative model. On one side is the separation of church and state, in terms of their inner life, their financing; on the other, in terms of cooperation in the field of cultural heritage in the areas of education, health and social care, prison service or spiritual involvement in the armed forces. This model, working abroad is proof that churches and religious communities on the one hand and the state on the other hand can be very good partners, and that their cooperation contributes to the well being of citizens as well as those countries themselves. “