Barki Gergely et al.: Czóbel. A French Hungarian painter - ArtMill publications 5. (Szentendre, 2014)
Mimi Kratochwill: Béla Czóbel's mature period, 1925-1976
203. Béla Czóbel: The Church St. Julién le Pauvre, 1926. Private collection 203 I A. The church St. Julien le Pauvre in Paris, postcard 204. Béla Czóbel: City Detail from the Balcony, 1920S. Private collection he drew of the delicate church (St. Julien) which still stands in the little square next to a wharf enveloped by the same profound silence as by that time reflects the profundity of Czóbel’s painting (Plate 203). The church detail embraced in marked contours, the bare branches next to the building, the houses further back in the picture field, his favourite ochres and greens, and the stained glass windows of the church render perceptible the artist’s manly expression of lyricism with a hint of mystery. His composition fills the entire picture surface with intermittent views onto the park, thus creating the illusion of space. As much as Czóbel needed peace and quiet for his painting, he enjoyed the busy flow of people walking on the streets of Paris in equal measure. The warm tones of the houses, windows, balconies and sign-boards of corner shops selling wine inspired many of his works. In 1927 Czóbel had an exhibition in the New York gallery of József Brummer (1883-1947), a former student of his in Nagybánya (today Baia Mare, in Romania), who had later become a gallery owner. From this exhibition’s catalogue we are familiar with the titles of the pictures displayed there, nine of which can be linked to Paris.3 The introduction of the catalogue was written by his old Parisian friend, Claude Roger-Marx, one of those outstanding art writers and art historians who took an interest in Czóbel’s work (others include Adolphe Basler, Christian Rohlfs, Erich Weise, Louis Vauxcelles, Julius Meier-Graefe, Jean Bouret, Georges Duthuit, Jean Cassou, Bernard Dórival, 3 Avenue du Main (two versions), Notre Dame (also two works), Jardin, La Rue Galande, Paysage de Paris, La Seine et la Préfecture and Parvis de Notre Dame. BELA CZÓBEL’S MATURE PERIOD, 1925-1976 129
