Kaján Imre (szerk.): Zalai Múzeum 22. (Zalaegerszeg, 2015)
Megyeri Anna: Fényirdák, fényképészek, amatőr fotográfusok Zalaegerszegen, a dualizmus idején
200 Megyeri Anna Abstract In its 20th volume, Göcsej Museum presents photographer Ferenc Tömöry who moved from Szombathely to Zalaegerszeg, then continued his activity in Croatia during the 1860s. In this period Zalaegerszeg was an isolated county centre with 8 to 10 thousand citizens who were familiar with photography and became customers of photographers. At the beginning of this era local citizens could only use the services of travelling photographers and periodical photo ateliers. Photographers regularly advertised their services in the local media. Their advertisements provided the source for this study along with publications at the time on the latest photographic inventions, on the photographers, also the resources of the Town Archive and the literature related to the period. The introduction gives an overview on the use of photographs at the time. During the reviewed period photography became more and more popular and the study presents two of the amateur photographs: Mihály Kláffl who taught religious studies and Tamás Morandini who was an architect. Dr Szilárd Steiner, a teacher of the local grammar school, wrote a book on colour photography in 1913. The texts of the advertisements and the photographs that survived give us a glimpse into the activity of the photographers at the time: Antal Lovich, Anna Gombos, Dezső Bertgaun and Péter Kalmár among others. We can also see the photographs of Pál Kalmár whose activity was only known in Zalaegerszeg. There is only one architectural plan available today. This was ordered by photographers Pataki and Moritz in 1910. The atelier was not realised. Junior Ferenc Knébel (b. 1868, d. 1943) came from a famous photographer dynasty in Szombathely and worked in Zalaegerszeg from 1892 till 1895. After this period he relocated to his hometown and became a civil servant. In 1895 photographer Béla Antal (b. 1862, d. 1911) relocated to Zalaegerszeg from Székesfehérvár and rented the former Knébel Atelier. Fie was initially seated in the town centre, then moved his activity to 40 Kossuth Street where he was active until his death in 1911. He was known as a skilled user of platinum prints, and he was the first photographer commissioned to take plein air photographs at local events including the inauguration of the flag of the Craftsmen’s Society in 1900 and the opening ceremony of the Synagouge in 1904. Viktor Saly (b. 1877, d. 1917) studied in the Knébel Atelier in Szombathely and moved to Zalaegerszeg in 1902. He took over the former Antal Atelier in Zala Street. He married the daughter of a local craftsman, Anna Puer. They had three daughters. As a result of his army service during the WWI he became ill. After his death in 1917 his widow took over his activity and their daughters became photographers as well. The Antal Atelier was taken over by photographer Szigethy in 1910 who moved to Zalaegerszeg from the capital. Göcsej Museum was donated some extraordinary group photographs by a late successor of Szigethy. Dóri Vajda (b. 1880, d.1944) relocated to Zalaegerszeg from Duisburg area in 1912. She carried out her activity in the town until the WWI I during which she became a holocaust victim. The study presents the social relations of the photographers and their customers on the most characteristic photographs which are now made open to the public.
