Between the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th, Europe went through a true wave of modernism, due to the industrial revolution and rapid technological development. In the artistic arena, this modernisation is translated into a new style of creativity without references to the traditional, profoundly transforming the European art scene. The IVAM exhibition interprets this artistic phenomenon paying special attention to painting and sculpture, with the unique exception of the great architect Antonio Gaudí. It is analysed from its initial steps, such as those of the Els Quatre Gats Café, the attraction for modern life, the end of modernism and the beginnings of Noucentisme, through works of the movement’s most important artists including Gaudí, Picasso, Casas, Rusiñol, Nonell and Julio González. These artists create their own expressive, strong individual languages, making it difficult to discern an ideal common to all of them, but they do share certain aspects such as the desire to create new and free forms and break from Romanticism and historicism. Modernism left its decisive imprint on all forms of artistic expression, from music to painting, from graphic arts and architecture to poetry and theatre.

IVAM
Guillem de Castro, 118
Tel 963 863 000