Opening of Alphonse Mucha: Art Nouveau & Utopia

“The purpose of my work has never been to break down, but always to construct, to build bridges." —Alphonse Mucha

The Mucha Museum, a new arts destination dedicated to the work of world-renowned Czech artist Alphonse Mucha (1860–1939), officially opens in the Savarin Palace in Prague on February 24, 2025 with Alphonse Mucha: Art Nouveau & Utopia.

Situated in the centre of historic Prague within the Baroque setting of the Savarin Palace, which has been exquisitely restored by the Czech property developer Crestyl in close consultation with heritage institutions, the Mucha Museum promises to be a new cultural landmark for lovers of art and history alike, exploring the work and life of one of the world’s best known Czech artists. It represents an important first step in the development of the Thomas Heatherwick-designed Savarin project, as well as a new era for Mucha’s legacy.

Born in a small town in Moravia, Mucha rose to fame in Paris in the 1890s when his lithograph posters for Sarah Bernhardt, the most celebrated French actress of the day, became immediately iconic. Their sinuous lines, organic forms and muted palette were characterised as “Le Style Mucha” and became synonymous with the newly emerging decorative style of the time—Art Nouveau.

Regarded as “the greatest decorative artist in the world”, Mucha’s designs were extraordinarily influential; he was the one of the earliest artists to gain international acclaim in both Europe and America, and his graphic genius has shaped our visual language, continuing to influence and inspire artists from diverse movements and cultures, including Hollywood, tattoo art, Manga and street art.

While the posters Mucha produced in Paris have always been his most popular works, Mucha was an unusually versatile artist: a painter, sculptor, photographer and designer in a wide range of media, as well as an inspiring teacher and philosopher. An avowed “artist for the people”, for Mucha, art was a language to express his ideal of drawing people together to promote progress and peace. 

Presenting the permanent exhibition Alphonse Mucha: Art Nouveau & Utopia, the museum showcases some ninety works from the Mucha Trust Collection, including paintings, posters, drawings, books and photographs, along with immersive and digital projections. It explores Mucha’s artistic and spiritual journey, from his most popular Art Nouveau poster designs—which he conceived as an alternative art form to make the beauty of art accessible to the wider public—through to the creation of his masterpiece, The Slav Epic, and the ideological vision that underpinned these.

Marcus Mucha, great-grandson of Alphonse Mucha and Executive Director of the Mucha Foundation, shared his excitement for the opening: “Our aim is not only to showcase Mucha’s well-known masterpieces, but also to share the wealth of artistic works from the Mucha Family Collection that reveal his extraordinary artistic journey from a small village in the Austro-Hungarian Empire where his love of Slavic culture was formed, to fin-de-siècle Paris where he forged a style that won over the world, to America where was a celebrated artist and friend to presidents, and its culmination with a return to his homeland. We’re thrilled to present an overview of Mucha’s work into this exceptional space that – much like my great-grandfather and his art — has played an important role in Czech history, and which has been sensitively restored to its former glory by Crestyl. We’re delighted too that Eva Jiřičná, one of the Czech Republic’s most renowned architects, and her company AI DESIGN, have created the museum's exhibition space.”

Simon Johnson, CEO of Crestyl, commented:  "The Savarin Palace is an important cultural monument of the Czech Republic, being not only one of the most beautiful Baroque palaces in Prague, but also having been the home of a famous social club frequented by prominent Czech intellectuals during the First Republic. Yet it suffered from misuse and had fallen into disrepair. Rescuing what was until recently a casino and replacing it with a museum for one of the most important Czech artists perfectly illustrates what’s at the heart of the Savarin project. We are proud to be part of an initiative that brings Alphonse Mucha’s remarkable body of work to the public in a spectacular new setting. The Mucha Museum will be a centrepiece of Prague’s cultural landscape, and it represents a major step in transforming the Thomas Heatherwick-designed Savarin project into a thriving destination for both local and international visitors.”

Tomoko Sato, Art historian and curator of the Mucha Foundation, explains what it means to see Mucha’s work in this context: “The Savarin Palace provides the ideal stage to explore Mucha’s work. Stepping inside the palace, it is immediately clear that there is a direct connection between the artistic spirit that infuses its Baroque paintings, sculptures and architecture and that of Mucha’s art. This  can be seen across his entire career: from his earliest decorative commissions to the Moravian symbolism that informed Le Style Mucha, through to the dynamic compositions of his The Slav Epic, his art intentionally asserted his Czech heritage. Mucha’s spiritual home is here, in this glorious 18th-century palace in the heart of Prague, and we’re delighted that the Czech public, seasoned Mucha lovers and new audiences alike have the opportunity to encounter his work in this context.” 

The exhibition design for the Mucha Museum has been planned by the renowned Czech architectural studio AI DESIGN, who in 2022 cooperated with the Mucha Foundation to design the exhibition Mucha: The Family Collection, presented in cooperation with the Czech Senate at Prague’s Waldstein Riding School as the cultural centrepiece of the Czech Republic’s rotating presidency of the European Union. 

Eva Jiřičná, co-founder of AI DESIGN, said: “To design a museum exhibition is one of the most pleasant works an architect can think of and to participate in the design of Alphonse Mucha’s museum inside an extraordinary historic monument — the Savarin Palace in the heart of Prague — is a real treat. It is a challenge to marry the 18th-century expressive and grandiose interior with the work of this internationally renowned artist and sculptor, so integral to the period in which he lived and created, and whose multifaceted talent is clearly rooted in his country of origin. It has been our aim to create a harmony between the two completely different worlds and personalities, and we hope the immersive environment not only honours Mucha’s legacy but also fosters a deeper appreciation for the intricate relationship between art design and cultural history.”

The exhibition will be accompanied by a richly illustrated full-colour catalogue edited by curator Tomoko Sato.

For more information about the Mucha Museum, please visit its website. 

Press enquiries: Gair Burton and Amanda Kelly at Pickles PR