Földes Mária: „... a szelídség szobra” - Válogatás Ferenczy Béni szobrászművész hagyatékából (A Magyar Nemzeti Galéria kiadványai 2005/2)

He married his second wife inl 935, and lived with her, his inspiring muse, to the end of his life. In the shadow of all historical, human, family tragedies, she meant for him a harmony finally found, the warmth of family fire, lost motherly care. There are few works of his in which Erzsi's beautiful visage, her powerful yet gently depicted figure cannot be discovered. As a result of a stroke, Béni Ferenczy was paralyzed on his right and lost his ability to speak in 1956. With the support and enduring patience of Erzsi, he managed to regain his will to live and create, and thus learned to draw and model with his left hand. The artist was given another ten years to complete his lifework - though he very much depended on his wife's devoted care and hope-giving love. After his death, Erzsi was sustained by looking after, preserving and publicizing this outstanding œuvre. It is thus partly owing to her that this exhibition came into being, which displays the work of the master through works often born of profoundly personal motives. It has put on show works seldom, or never before, seen by the public, such as the cubist chess sets made of ebony and ivory on a lathe during his Berlin sojourn or the silk scarf he painted for his wife on her birthday in 1955. The collection includes works that were made in single copies, for example the medal cast to commemorate their son's tragic death in 1943, the particularly tender, excruciating nude boy, Miklós, or the Crucifix (1952), which can be seen as a self-portrait. From among the 400 works held by the Foundation, the material exhibited shows a versatile and exciting Béni Ferenczy. The exhibits are characteristic pieces from all his periods, and their personal features add new meaning to the well-established profile of the artist. Petőfi, 1956 (33)