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1902 Turin
| Name: | Prima Esposizione Internazionale d’Arte Decorativa Moderna First International Exposition of Modern Decorative Art |
| Dates: | 10 May |
| Days: | 60 days |
| Venue: | Parco del Valentino |
| Theme: | Art Nouveau design, its aim: ‘Only original products that show a decisive tendency toward aesthetic renewal of form will be admitted. Neither mere imitations of past styles nor industrial products not inspired by an artistic sense will be accepted.’ |
| Exhibitors: | 34 Art Nouveau themed rooms |
| Awards: | No data |
| Visitors: | 40,000 |
| Legacy: |
The aim of the exposition was to seek to renew Italian architecture and decorative arts given the then popularity of Art Nouveau. Italians of the time called this Stile Liberty.
 1902 Grand Palace |  1902 Grand Palace detail |
A competition selected Raimondo D’Aronco as the chief architect, he had won a similar competition in1890. For this show he modelled his pavilions on those of Joseph Maria Olbrich in Darmstadt. His Grand Palace was a tour-de-force of Art Nouveau, much influenced by the Vienna Secession. The Pavilion of Honour was inspired by the Hagia Sophia.
There was a photography pavilion, that contained a colocated show, Esposizione Internazionale di Fotografia Artistica. Alfred Stieglitz, an American photographer, won a ‘Diploma of Honor’ for a group of photographs, and the ‘King’s Prize’ – a bronze bust awarded by the King of Italy – for his collection of American pictorial photographs.
The automobile pavilion was a simple industrial shed, but it had an 80m facade (262.5 ft) that gave it its style.
 1902 Turin – Interior by Victor Horta |  |
Artists and architects submitted sketches and drawings and from these thierty-four rooms were on display, including “A Lady’s Writing Room” designed by Frances MacDonald and Herbert MacNair of the Glasgow School.
Charles Rennie Mackintosh exhibited hise ‘Rose Boudoir’ in the Scottish Section of the show, earning a diploma of honour. The failure of the show meant the Scottish Section had a £51 loss on the event reporting that while ‘a substantial number of items were sold, each item was subject to 15% commission collected by the Turin sales agent, Signor Gineri, and the exhibition committee. However, a significant proportion of Mackintosh’s and Macdonald’s (his wife’s) work was bought by Fritz Waerndorfer, an Austrian mill owner and art collector, and shipped to Vienna in November 1902. Among the items were a black writing desk, a cabinet, light fittings, and two plaster panels. The total sum paid was £178 11s 0d, which represented 70% of Mackintosh’s annual income as an architect in Glasgow in 1902.
The English Arts and Crafts Exhibition Society had many artworks by its members on show.
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