Horváth János: Rippl-Rónai József iparművészeti munkássága, az Andrássy-ebédlő (Kaposvár, 2013)
János Horváth: József Rippl-Rónai and the Applied Arts - the Andrássy Dining Room
I Rippl-Rónai was tenaciously searching for the means of gaining acknowledgement at home, aptly finding his way in the labyrinth of bureaucratic and private relations. He organised his first exhibition in Budapest, Hungary, to accord with the opening of an international congress of art historians, held in September-Oc- tober of 1896. He was introduced to the public at a private event, held at the apartment of Ferenc Sima, a Member of Parliament. There he became acquainted with Count Tivadar Andrássy, who invited him to his manor in Tőketerebes. The Count (1857-1905), a patron of the arts and an influential actor in Hungarian cultural politics, requested him to design and procure the furnishings of the dining room of his new mansion in Buda. Rippl-Rónai returned to Paris and devoted himself to this undertaking. He visited Bing's gallery, which showcased an Art Nouveau dining room, and also displayed furnishings by Van de Velde, tapestries by Paul Ranson. Searching for the simple, essential form was Rippl-Rónai's motto. He was looking for cupboards with a simple framework. The following description of one of his works might highlight his transformation from a painter to a designer. He completed the enigmatic, huge, unparalleled painting "A St. Justin's Chapel in Leval- lois" in Paris, 1897. It portrays the contoured structure and solemn symmetry of a side-altar, decorated with candles and vases, of the St. Justin's Catholic church. It is no coincidence that the portrayal of the altar cabinet bears a strong resemblance to the drafts of a Welsh dresser dated "October, 1897": both represent an artistic spirit and discipline that concentrates on the essence of the structure. Both reveal the artist's acceptance of the strict world of handicrafts, acting as a monk whose daily routine includes mental and physical activity as well. Considering the sensual character of Rippl-Rónai's art, he must have subjected himself to painstaking regulations in order to meet the challenges of applied arts. Generally speaking, his acts were motivated by challenges, and this conduct accounted for his professional success. The altar cabinet is crucial to study, as it served as a model to the Andrássy Dining Room's great Welsh dresser. Rippl-Rónai wanted to transform the space of the dining room in a comprehensive, artistic way. His design was inspired by the complexity of church interiors and the intimacy of chapel furnishings (stained glass windows, Baroque ceilings, altar cabinets, altar pictures). There is, however, a significant difference: the space designed by Rippl-Rónai does not aim to evoke sacredness but to assist the ceremonious dinners of the Andrássy family. Rippl- Rónai was devotedly studying the characteristics of the family's surroundings, such as the chestnut trees and the rose garden at Tőketerebes. He was also an admirer of the beauty of the Countess. Every detail of the interior, from the grand pieces of furniture to the smaller ornaments, is subject to the idea of the„enclosed garden", on which Rippl-Rónai's artistic concept was built. Among the conceptual drafts, only a tint-drawing has survived. The characteristic texture of the strokes reveals an almost abstract, vegetative circulation. This tint-drawing does not display an ad hoc inventory but the artist's inner voice. Rippl- Rónai's garden follows the rich, rampant Rousseauian model. The same spirit can be detected in the way he let his own garden, the garden of the Roma-villa (the villa was acquired ten years after the contract with Andrássy), proliferate.This concept of Nature appears on the stained glass windows, the tapestry, and the bigger plates of the dining room. The decoration of the furnishings, the plates, and the folding screen is realised as colourful, shiny, playful motifs of flowers.
