Exhibition prepared by Professor Sorin Vasilescu from Ion Mincu University of Architecture and Urbanism in Bucharest presents a selection of photographs  of buildings erected in the territory of  Romania within the period: end of 19th century and early 20th century.  The photographs compose a story of the development of Art Nouveau understood as the first tendency toward modernism in architecture and they show the diversity resulting from various social, cultural and political conditions.
In the history of architecture of territories under the Austro-Hungarian Empire – Transylvania, Bukovina –  where a strong influence of Viennese Secession, mainly Ödön Lechner’s works is noticeable. Patterned on characteristic smooth, curve-lined ornamentations, such architects as Jakab Dezo and Komor Marcell, also reached out to folk motifs. “Linearism” appeared later, inspired by  Otto Wagner’s and Josef Hoffmann’s Viennese works, as well as Charles Mackintosh’s creativity.
Modernization of all aspects of life, took place in the old Kingdom of Romanian, that is,  in the territory of united Moldavia and Wallachia, leading to changes from the old, patriarchal, belonging to “Byzantium after Byzantium” reality into a modern European state. Relations with Western Europe played an important role in this process, especially cultural and emotional connections with France.
Apart from this, the presentation also shows  a distinct trend, represented mainly  by an outstanding architect Ion Mincu, through whom a new variety of Art Nouveau, called “Neo-Romanian style”, came into existence, outpacing nearly a decade similar experiments in western Europe. In the heated atmosphere of early 20th century an authentic national school of architecture was born, exploiting former citations from old Romanian art. It became the starting point in top achievements in contemporary Romanian architecture in the interwar period – the best times in the history of the country, when outstanding artists such as Constantin Brancusi, George Enescu, Dinu Lipatti, Tristan Tzara and Mircea Eliade appeared on the cultural scene.