Juan Carlos Castagnino Municipal Museum of Art
Encyclopedia
The Juan Carlos Castagnino Municipal Museum of Art is the premier museum of fine arts in Mar del Plata
, Argentina
.
, among the most prominent landowners in Argentina, the distinctive villa on Mar del Plata's prestigious Stella Maris Hill was built in 1909 as a summer residence. Designed by Luis Dubois and Pablo Pater, the eclecticist, Art nouveau
villa followed a picturesque movement in French architecture
common to new, upscale residences in both France and Argentina, at the time (the exterior's half-timber motif, accordingly, was painted on). The structure, predominantly in stone, was capped by zinc mansard roofing.
The oceanfront city was given its first municipal museum of fine art in 1938, when the facility was inaugurated in the Mar del Plata City Hall. The museum gathered a collection of mainly modern art
in subsequent decades, and in particular works by local realist painter and muralist Juan Carlos Castagnino
.
The donation of the villa by the Ortíz Basualdo family resulted in the museum's relocation, and the institution was reinauguarted therein on July 9, 1980. The family's donation included a large selection of furniture acquired between 1909 and the villa's remodel in 1918. The collection, designed by Belgian architect and cabinetmaker Gustave Serrurier-Bovy
, is widely considered among the world's finest of its type, and was incorporated into the museum's exhibits.
The museum's collections feature nearly 600 paintings, sculptures, lithographs, photographs and other works, including those by Argentine artists Antonio Berni
, Alberto Bruzzone, Prilidiano Pueyrredón
, Luis Seoane
, Raúl Soldi
, and Juan Carlos Castagnino, for whom the museum was renamed in 1982, and of whom the museum houses 138 works.
Across the street from the Mar del Plata Museum of the Sea
, the villa, an exhibit in itself, was declared Cultural Patrimony of the City of Mar del Plata in 1995.
Mar del Plata
Mar del Plata is an Argentine city located on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, south of Buenos Aires. Mar del Plata is the second largest city of Buenos Aires Province. The name "Mar del Plata" had apparently the sense of "sea of the Río de la Plata region" or "adjoining sea to the Río de la Plata"...
, Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
.
Overview
Commissioned by the Ortíz Basualdo family of Buenos AiresBuenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
, among the most prominent landowners in Argentina, the distinctive villa on Mar del Plata's prestigious Stella Maris Hill was built in 1909 as a summer residence. Designed by Luis Dubois and Pablo Pater, the eclecticist, Art nouveau
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau is an international philosophy and style of art, architecture and applied art—especially the decorative arts—that were most popular during 1890–1910. The name "Art Nouveau" is French for "new art"...
villa followed a picturesque movement in French architecture
French architecture
The history of French architecture runs in parallel with its neighbouring countries in Europe, with France being home to both some of the earliest pioneers in many architectural styles, and also containing some of the finest architectural creations of the continent.-Roman:The architecture of...
common to new, upscale residences in both France and Argentina, at the time (the exterior's half-timber motif, accordingly, was painted on). The structure, predominantly in stone, was capped by zinc mansard roofing.
The oceanfront city was given its first municipal museum of fine art in 1938, when the facility was inaugurated in the Mar del Plata City Hall. The museum gathered a collection of mainly modern art
Modern art
Modern art includes artistic works produced during the period extending roughly from the 1860s to the 1970s, and denotes the style and philosophy of the art produced during that era. The term is usually associated with art in which the traditions of the past have been thrown aside in a spirit of...
in subsequent decades, and in particular works by local realist painter and muralist Juan Carlos Castagnino
Juan Carlos Castagnino
Juan Carlos Castagnino was an Argentine painter, architect, muralist and sketch artist.Born in the city of Mar del Plata, he studied in the Escuela de Bellas Artes in Buenos Aires, and became a disciple of Lino Enea Spilimbergo and Ramón Gómez Cornet.By the end of the 1920s, he became a member of...
.
The donation of the villa by the Ortíz Basualdo family resulted in the museum's relocation, and the institution was reinauguarted therein on July 9, 1980. The family's donation included a large selection of furniture acquired between 1909 and the villa's remodel in 1918. The collection, designed by Belgian architect and cabinetmaker Gustave Serrurier-Bovy
Gustave Serrurier-Bovy
Gustave Serrurier-Bovy was a Belgian architect and furniture designer. He is credited with creating the Art Nouveau style, coined as a style in Paris by Bing....
, is widely considered among the world's finest of its type, and was incorporated into the museum's exhibits.
The museum's collections feature nearly 600 paintings, sculptures, lithographs, photographs and other works, including those by Argentine artists Antonio Berni
Antonio Berni
Delesio Antonio Berni was a figurative artist, born in Rosario, province of Santa Fe, Argentina. He worked as a painter, an illustrator and an engraver. His father, Napoleón Berni, was an immigrant tailor from Italy...
, Alberto Bruzzone, Prilidiano Pueyrredón
Prilidiano Pueyrredón
Prilidiano Pueyrredón was an Argentine painter, architect, and engineer. As one of the country's first prominent painters, he was known for his costumbrist sensibility and preference for everyday themes....
, Luis Seoane
Luís Seoane
Luis Seoane was a lithographer and artist. Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina on June 1, 1910, of Galician immigrants, he spent much of his childhood and youth in Galicia . He was educated in A Coruña...
, Raúl Soldi
Raúl Soldi
Raúl Soldi was an Argentine painter whose work treated various subjects, including landscapes, portraits, the theater and the circus, and nature. His theatrical figures are renowned for their melancholy appearance...
, and Juan Carlos Castagnino, for whom the museum was renamed in 1982, and of whom the museum houses 138 works.
Across the street from the Mar del Plata Museum of the Sea
Mar del Plata Museum of the Sea
The Museum of the Sea is a museum of marine biology and aquarium in the seaside city of Mar del Plata, Argentina.-Overview:A gift box containing fifteen seashells, and delivered to 18-year-old Benjamín Sisterna from his brother in 1932, created a lifelong fascination with sea shells and...
, the villa, an exhibit in itself, was declared Cultural Patrimony of the City of Mar del Plata in 1995.