Barki Gergely et al.: Czóbel. A French Hungarian painter - ArtMill publications 5. (Szentendre, 2014)
Mimi Kratochwill: Béla Czóbel's mature period, 1925-1976
Czóbel’s next exhibition opened in 1950 in the Paris gallery of his old acquaintance of Russian origin, Katia Granoff. This show was given a great deal of press coverage and almost every article mentioned that Czóbel had been exhibiting in Paris since 1903. In addition to the nudes and interiors, it was the picture entitled Boats on the Seaside that attracted the most attention. Unfortunately, due to the lack of a catalogue or photos we cannot reconstruct the exhibition material. The pictures in the exhibition also impressed the owner of the gallery, which is attested to by her dedication of her book, published in 1963, to Czóbel: “au grand peintre Czobel en souvenir de notre collaboration et en signe de mon admiration. K[atia] Granoff 1963”.15 In the meantime, Czóbel and his wife had their house in Szentendre enlarged so that they both had a studio. The artist painted many portraits, landscapes and still-lifes, while his wife, who spoilt her husband, had scant time for her own painting. In 1951, after the married couple returned from France, several interviews were conducted with Czóbel. At that time it was unusual for a Hungarian painter to travel abroad almost every year, consequently, it was important that he gave an account about the artistic life abroad. We can read the following in one of the interviews: “We found Béla Czóbel, the great Hungarian painter who had recently returned from Paris, in his garden among his favourite apple trees in Szentendre. In a cosy corner of the studio a photograph caught my eye. It had been taken in Picasso’s Parisian studio. The figures of the two, grey-haired masters are dwarfed by the shadow of an enormous bronze sculpture. I recognise Picasso’s world famous sculpture entitled »Man with a Lamb«.”16 Czóbel and Maria paid regular trips to Paris. They would mostly travel there in the autumn months. If no extraordinary event occurred, they would remain in France from autumn until spring and live their everyday life, painting and happily taking part in artistic programmes with their friends. Out of those still-lives he painted in the early 1950s one of outstanding significance is the oil painting with the title Still-life with Red Jug (Plate 297). In this picture the objects of everyday use in the artist’s surroundings - a jug, a dotted mug, a tray and several books - are snuggly placed close to one another. The composition may appear crammed, yet a strict order of form is lent to it 15 The book was published in Paris by the Gallimard Publisher under the title Anthologie de la poésie Russe du XVIII-e siécle a nos jours. 16 Magyar Nemzet, [Hungarian Nation], 3 June 1951. The photo shows Czóbel and his wife, Mária Modokand Picasso. Czóbel told, that although Picasso had never met Modok before, still he greeted her kindly and added how long he had not seen her, and was glad to meet her. BÉLA CZÓBEL’S MATURE PERIOD, 1925-1976 173 278. Béla Czóbel: Head of a Girl, 1936. Budapest, Museum of Fine Arts - Hungarian National Gallery 277. Béla Czóbel: Portrait of Mme Daudet, 1933. Private collection
