The Artistic Discourse of a Collector – Dr. Rafael Dolinšek’s Collection from the NMMU Holdings is the title of an exhibition set to open on 23 January at the Artmark Gallery in Zagreb. The exhibition is part of an ongoing series of projects highlighting the successful collaboration between the National Museum of Modern Art and the Romanian auction house, which has been active in Croatia since 2022.
Tatijana Gareljić, museum consultant at the National Museum of Modern Art, has curated a selection of 32 artworks for the exhibition, drawn from the collection of the distinguished gynaecologist, collector, and patron, now housed within the museum’s holdings. The collection includes paintings and sculptures produced between 1910 and 1949 by artists who were prominent on Zagreb’s art scene at the time. Among them are Stojan Aralica, Antun Augustinčić, Ljubo Babić, Narcis Burić, Milan Butozan, Vinko Grdan, Robert Jean Ivanović, Želimir Janeš, Hinko Juhn, Jozo Kljaković, Frano Kršinić, Antun Mezdjić, Oton Postružnik, Kamilo Ružička, Vilim Svečnjak, Ljudevit Šestić, Frano Šimunović, Slavko Šohaj, Sava Šumanović, Đuro Tiljak, Marijan Trepše, and Vladimir Varlaj.
The Collection of Dr. Rafael Dolinšek, part of the National Museum of Modern Art’s holdings, features key works from the Group of Three and members of the Earth Association of Artists, alongside important sculptural pieces by artists such as Augustinčić, Kršinić, and Želimir Janeš. In addition to iconic works like Kljaković’s Fishermen, Golgotha, and Marijan Trepše’s Young Woman with a Water Pitcher, Tiljak’s Reef by the Sea, Varlaj’s Vrbnik, Postružnik’s Peasants, and Augustinčić’s bust of the collector, the collection also includes works by many other prominent painters and sculptors. It also contains pieces by lesser-known artists, including the painter Milan Butozan (Pančevo, 1905 – Zagreb, 1943), whose work further illuminates the vibrant art scene of the time. The artworks in this collection reflect not only Dr. Dolinšek’s personal preferences but also the cultural and historical trends of the period. They serve as a bridge between the past and the present, connecting different generations through the universal language of art, as emphasized by Tatijana Gareljić in the exhibition’s accompanying text.
Translated by Robertina Tomić
Images: (from left to right) Marijan Trepše, Young Woman with a Water Pitcher, 1926 / oil on cardboard, 68 x 55 cm / National Museum of Modern Art, MG-2459 / Milan Butozan, Portrait of Dr. Rafael Dolinšek / oil on canvas, 100.5 x 77.5 cm / 103 x 78 cm, MG-2475 / Vladimir Varlaj, Vrbnik, 1921 / oil on canvas / 57.5 x 43.5 cm including frame: 81 x 67 cm / MG-2480
Photo: Goran Vranić © National Museum of Modern Art, Zagreb