Zádor Anna: Neoclassical Pest - Our Budapest (Budapest, 1993)
250.“The neoclassical style, which, for the most part, grew out of the ideas of the Enlightenment, dominated the whole of Europe at this time. There was a longing in society for balanced, harmonious, rationally comprehensible and visually appreciable works of art. In search of this, people turned to the age of antiquity, typified by peristylar articulation, serene architectural ornamentation, and buildings finished with cornices or centres surmounted by large pediments and smaller pediments crowning doors and window apertures. At the same time these preferences indicate that people were abandoning picturesque and turbulent sculptural decorations on their houses as well as the dramatic contrasts used to shape wall-faces, which were so characteristic of the previous baroque era. In Hungary-and especially in Budapest-this was a period of widespread economic and cultural upheaval, which naturally led to faster and more prolific architectural activity. Many of the buildings erected at this time can still be seen today, proving the high artistic level of the neoclassical style in Hungary.” p . . ’ f m CITY HALL
