Zwickl András szerk.: Árkádia tájain, Szőnyi István és köre 1918–1928. (A Magyar Nemzeti Galéria kiadványai 2001/3)

TANULMÁNYOK - FERENC ZSÁKOVICS: "The Young Hungarian Etchers" - The Renewal of Graphical Art after the First World War

FERENC ZSÁKOVICS "The Young Hungarian Etchers" The Renewal of Graphical Art after the First World War The decade that followed the conclusion of the First World War witnessed the renewal and spectacular flourish of graphical and printed art all over Europe. The classic forms of intaglio printing, i.e. copperplate engraving and etching, were the characteristic genres of the period described already at the time by the best of contemporary critics - Jenő Bálint, Artúr Elek, Károly Lyka, Máriusz Rabinovszky - as the latest Renaissance in Hungarian graphical art. To see the art of etching of the decade unfold in its full, one only has to leaf through the list of works in the exhibition catalogues and study the illustrated articles in the magazines Ars Una, A Műbarát, Magyar Művészet and the archived information on the period's graphical output, as compiled by Nándor Lajos Varga,'' or go through the material of graphical collections, most notably that of the Hungarian National Gallery.' When one considers the causes of the flourish in graphical arts in the 1 920s, one must take into account numerous components. Especially important among them was the crisis that followed the Great War, with its runaway inflation and economic instability. After the initial boom the range of prospective buyers gradually narrowed down, with the result that the art dealership business came to something of a standstill.'

1 Very few people could afford to buy large oil paintings and the art-loving public had to settle for smaller and cheaper drawings and prints. Károly Lyka recalls that "Of the art techniques, graphics deserves a special mention, and most notably does etching, the noblest of its kind, which in our time has attained a remarkably high standard. (...) Its rising popularity among artists must have partly been due to the fact that the production of a graphical work requires much less investment than that of an oil painting. Since it is a printing technique, once the plate is complete, numerous copies can be made from it with minimal extra cost. These are not insignificant considerations at the time of an economic crisis.'" The interest in printed graphics - lithographs and woodcuts, as well as etchings - grew substantially, for these could provide, despite their smaller size and the employment of the serial technique, an artistic and aesthetic experience comparable to that of the more representative artworks. "Etchings, hitherto largely overlooked, have recently gained in the collectors and amateurs' esteem. In accordance with the public demand, the art dealers began to take a sudden interest in the graphic medium, purchasing and exhibiting the prints. Among the newly emerged art dealers there were some who specialised in graphics, coming to a contract-like agreement with the young artists and organising the distribution of their works. Others collected etchings by various artists in folders. An etching print shop was opened in Budapest, which was a welcome opportunity for our artists with limited means. This was a period of artificially propped-up money supply following the revolutions," Artúr Elek writes in his comprehensive study.

6 Printed graphics appeared on the walls and in the folders of smaller galleries in growing numbers. Among the first to hold comprehensive exhibitions were Gyula Réti and Vilmos Szilárd in Auróra [Magyar művészek rézkarckiállítása, 1922), Jenő Bálint in Alkotás Művészház [Modern grafika, 1 923) and Lajos Dénes jointly with Bálint in the Helikon Gallery [Magyar grafikusok a "Magyar Műkiadó" anyagából, 1923-1924). In addition to the older artists, representatives of the youngest generation, including Olgyai's students at the Academy of Fine Arts, had their works shown at these exhibitions very early on. Critics warmly received these exhibitions, discussing the compositions in tones of the highest praise and welcoming the pioneering role of the organisers.'' "It is an interesting enterprise that was long overdue; the extremely talented generation of graphical artists who came forward in the last few years finally had the opportunity to show their collected works. In contrast with the past when only second-rate artists engaged in graphical arts, industrious people captivated by the nitty-gritty of graphical techniques, including some of the outstandingly talented members of the latest generation of artists, have now turned to etching with utmost dedication."" Beside the etchings of István Szőnyi and János Kmetty, the works of Gyula Derkovits and Vilmos Aba-Novák were singled out in the article praising the exhibition in Auróra gallery. The bookshop and gallery Mentor, an ardent supporter of the modern tendencies, put on display, and offered for sale, those prints that the publisher Magyar Műkiadó Rt. published after 1923.'' Establishing direct contact with the artists, the Publisher mainly undertook the promotion of the works of young artists, such as Vilmos Aba-Novák, Géza Bene, Kálmán Istókovits, János Kmetty, Vince Korda, Károly Patkó, Jenő Tarjáni Simkovics, Imre Szobotka, István Szőnyi, Nándor Lajos Varga and Zsigmond Walleshausen.

10 The etchings on offer, the early works of István Szőnyi and Vilmos AbaNovák, were also published in illustrated catalogues." The long series of graphical exhibitions held in the Budapest Museum of Fine Arts during the 1920s played an important role in bolstering the reputation of graphical arts, and of etching in