SZÉKELY, Bertalan

This romantic picture is one of the most lyrical genre pictures in Hungarian painting.

This painting, being on the verge of both portrait and genre, commemorates the memory of the artist’s son �rmin who deceased in an early age.

Bertalan Sz�kely, who produced great paintings in various different genres, first turned to the problem of capturing the gracious movements of female dancers in the 1860s, at the time of painting Ladislas V and Ulrik Cillei. Later the same theme reappeared in his series The Life of the Woman and The Life of the Lascivious Woman. He painted his “The Dancer” around 1875. Here he seems to have been much preoccupied with lighting and the impressionistic delineation of the tired dancer at rest. Despite the warm yellow-red tones, a quiet resignation dominates the painting - this mood is probably in reference to the letter the fragile female beauty is holding in her hand.

Bertalan Sz�kely was the most fastidious master of the style known as historicism. He harboured the idea of painting The Discovery of the Body of King Louis the Second already during the years he spent in Transylvania following his studies in Vienna. After having clarified the role of each element of the composition, he painted the great work in 1860 in Munich, where he was studying under Piloty. Working out the structure and the accent of colours in detail was of prime importance for Sz�kely.

The last Hungarian king from the Jagello Dynasty, the young Louis II (1516-1526), was slain in the Battle of Moh�cs. His passing symbolizes the death of the nation and the beginning of the Turkish suzerainty which lasted 150 years. The gestures of respect for the dead as well as the white shroud, which contrast dramatically with the sombre atmosphere, work in unison to focus our attention on the tragic figure of the Hungarian king.

The artist was interested in this subject since 1870 and he painted several versions of it. On this painting the stylised appearance of the vegetation indicates the conscious Oriental effects of the Art Nouveau style. However, the plastic forms of the body, the delicate light-shadow effects, the radiating colours prove the presence of the Academic painting. This picture presents a peculiar and individual mixture of stylising and idealizing, Art Nouveau and Romanticism.

Bertalan Sz�kely was an outstanding master of Hungarian historical painting, also expressing the tragedy of the defeat in the War of Independence in his monumental works. He based his historical paintings on colourful, dynamic sketches and studies.

This painting of “L�szl� V and Cillei,” painted in subdued tones and mellow scarlets, is one of the best of its kind. He presents an excellent characterization of the helpless child-king, L�szl� V (1440-1457), and his deceitful uncle, Ulrik Cillei (1406-1456) overpowers his young charge with wine, food, jesting, music and dance, and all the while the King mechanically signs the decrees and death sentences. It was a moral verdict on the leading noblemen of the time, who ruined the country for their own interests. It was therefore not surprising that Sz�kely did not win a single prize with this picture. Its artistic values could not be denied, however, and the picture was bought for the National Museum.

This fine, forceful and romantic self-portrait of the young Sz�kely is one of the masterpieces of nineteenth-century Hungarian portraiture. His face, posture and whole being radiate strength of mind, intelligence and youthful self-esteem. It shows a man who is aware of his talent and vocation. This early painting by Sz�kely, who was otherwise of a philosophical nature, is one of his most freshly painted works, bearing no trace of hesitation or theoretical meditation. The warm grey-brown shades of the background and his hair and overcoat give great plasticity to details of his face, painted in light tones.

Apart from artistic considerations, Bertalan Sz�kely was concerned with expressing the firm intellect and morals of the artist friends and contemporaries he painted, and all his portraits are permeated with warm emotion.

The Siege of Eger occurred during the 16th century Ottoman Wars in Europe. It was a major Hungarian victory after a series of crushing defeats at the hands of Ottoman forces.

The fortress of Eger was defended by 2,100-2,300 people, a mixture of professional soldiers, insurgent peasants and a few dozen women. The Ottomans had expected an easy victory, but the bravery of the castle’s defenders resisted and repulsed repeated Ottoman assaults. After 39 days of bloody, brutal and intense fighting the Ottoman Army withdrew, beaten and humiliated. The defenders’ losses amounted to about one third of their ranks.