Let’s Walk Oradea and Talk Buildings

 

2. Art Nouveau, Oradea and me

I was born and raised in Oradea, Romania, a place that is part of the network of Art Nouveau Cities in Europe (along with Helsinki, Barcelona and Vienna- just to name a few). A place one must visit! Growing up in this small city, familiarized me with this architectural style, which I have found fascinating from the beginning.  While still living in my hometown, I discovered that most of the edifices that are nowadays listed as heritage buildings belonged to Jewish families (or that the architects were Jewish).  As such, I started to be very interested in all this, and made me want to create narratives, kind of bridges that connect the Jewish community and the European Art Nouveau architecture.

Map of Romania- Oradea

Source: Oradea - ROMANIA. Oradea City Map (Harta Orasului Oradea) (romaniatourism.com)

Not having any background in art history or architecture, but very interested in “the people of the book”, and eager to know more about the world of architecture and art in general, made me want to collect, convey and make more accessible to the public the stories and the links between this community and this tangible patrimony which put Oradea on the map of the Art Nouveau cities.

How did I first meet these architectural treasures? 

When a child, I used to go every week with my mother to the Vulturul Negru (Black Eagle Palace). For her, was the weekly walk in the city center, when she could visit the interesting and rare shops which would treasure rare objects, difficult to find during Ceausescu’s time.

Consignatia(the shop seen on the right-hand side of the photo below) was an “oasis”, where in the 80s and 90s one could hunt art objects and unique items that arrived (somehow) from the West. It was the place I remember the most! I was always very excited to be there and spend my time contemplating the paintings and smelling the old air. If I recall well, this was my first encounter with this stunning architecture…a first mise-en-bouche with a style which “haunted” me for years...

                                             The Black Eagle Palace- interior

Source: startupcafe.ro

The Black Eagle Palace is considered to be the most representative Secession architecture in Transylvania, and since 2011 is the symbol of the city. If you have ever been to Milan, Italy, and managed to see The Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, you will be surprised to find many common points with our building, especially when it comes to the interior glass passage.

The interior and the façade’s “make-up” did change during the past years, from its glorious time at the beginning of the 20^th century (when the palace hosted the first cinema showing Paramount pictures in Romania) until today when the edifice is trying desperately to regain its formal glory. 

Today, this magnificent building is hosting mainly bars, pubs, offices, and apartments. It is the magnetic spot of the city and the place everyone knows and loves. If anything happens in the city, it definitely has to happen by the Black Eagle Palace.

                                                            Black Eagle Palace- today

To be continued...

by Flavia MATEI