Bertalan Székely (8 May 1835,

Kolozsvár ; hu, kincses város) , official_name=Cluj-Napoca , native_name= , image_skyline= , subdivision_type1 = County , subdivision_name1 = Cluj County , subdivision_type2 = Status , subdivision_name2 = County seat , settlement_type = City , l ...

Transylvania Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the ...

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into the 20th century. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the coronation of the first king Stephe ...

(Now

Cluj-Napoca ; hu, kincses város) , official_name=Cluj-Napoca , native_name= , image_skyline= , subdivision_type1 = County , subdivision_name1 = Cluj County , subdivision_type2 = Status , subdivision_name2 = County seat , settlement_type = City , ...

after annexation by

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, a ...

following the

Treaty of Trianon The Treaty of Trianon (french: Traité de Trianon, hu, Trianoni békeszerződés, it, Trattato del Trianon) was prepared at the Paris Peace Conference and was signed in the Grand Trianon château in Versailles on 4 June 1920. It formal ...

– 21 August 1910,

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

) was a Hungarian history and portrait painter who worked in the

Romantic Romantic may refer to: Genres and eras * The Romantic era, an artistic, literary, musical and intellectual movement of the 18th and 19th centuries ** Romantic music, of that era ** Romantic poetry, of that era ** Romanticism in science, of that e ...

and

Academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, f ...

styles.

Biography

Born into a family that was originally part of the Transylvanian nobility, his father was a

court clerk A court clerk (British English: clerk to the court or clerk of the court ; American English: clerk of the court or clerk of court ) is an officer of the court whose responsibilities include maintaining records of a court, administer oaths to w ...

. Although his family wanted him to become an engineer, he studied at the Academy of Fine Arts, Vienna from 1851 to 1855, under

Johann Nepomuk Geiger Peter Johann Nepomuk Geiger (11 January 1805 – 29 October 1880) was a Viennese artist. Life Born in Vienna, Geiger wanted originally to follow the family tradition and become a sculptor, but drawing and painting were his natural element. ...

and Carl Rahl.Brief biography
@ the Magyar Életrajzi Lexikon. He then returned to his hometown where, for the next three years, he worked as an art teacher. After a year of employment with Count Aichelburg in Marschendorf, he married and moved to Munich, where he studied with Karl von Piloty. It was there that he first developed his interest in history painting. In 1862, he settled in

Pest Pest or The Pest may refer to: Science and medicine * Pest (organism), an animal or plant deemed to be detrimental to humans or human concerns ** Weed, a plant considered undesirable * Infectious disease, an illness resulting from an infection ** ...

. The following year, he won a contest with his painting "The Escape of Emperor Charles VII" and used the prize money to finance a trip to the Netherlands and Paris, returning in 1864. He became one of the first teachers hired at the new "Hungarian Royal Drawing School" (now the Hungarian University of Fine Arts) in 1871 and served as its Director from 1902 to 1905, when he took over the master classes. From the 1860s through the 1880s, he mostly painted portraits and female figures, then turned to landscapes. He also created decorative murals in the

Matthias Church , other name = , native_name = hu, Mátyás-templom , native_name_lang = , image = Matthias Church, Budapest, 2017.jpg , imagesize = , imagelink = , imagealt ...

, Budapest Opera House and the City Hall in

Kecskemét Kecskemét ( , sk, Kečkemét) is a city with county rights central part Hungary. It is the eighth-largest city in the country, and the county seat of Bács-Kiskun. Kecskemét lies halfway between the capital Budapest and the country's thir ...

. Later, he became interested in the movement studies made by

Edweard Muybridge Eadweard Muybridge (; 9 April 1830 – 8 May 1904, born Edward James Muggeridge) was an English photographer known for his pioneering work in photographic studies of motion, and early work in motion-picture projection. He adopted the first ...

and

Étienne-Jules Marey Étienne-Jules Marey (; 5 March 1830, Beaune, Côte-d'Or – 15 May 1904, Paris) was a French scientist, physiologist and chronophotographer. His work was significant in the development of cardiology, physical instrumentation, aviation, cine ...

and conducted some of his own.

Selected paintings

File:Székely Portrait of Adalbert Stifter 1863.jpg, Portrait of Adalbert Stifter (1863) File:El descubrimiento del cuerpo del rey Luis II, por Bertalan Székely.jpg, Discovering the Body of
King Louis II (1860) File:Egri no.jpg, The Women of

Eger Eger ( , ; ; also known by other alternative names) is the county seat of Heves County, and the second largest city in Northern Hungary (after Miskolc). A city with county rights. Eger is best known for its castle, thermal baths, baroque bu ...

(1867) File:Zivatar.jpg, Thunderstorm (1875)

Writings

* ''Székely Bertalan válogatott művészeti írásai'' (selected writings on art), introduction by László Maksay, Képzőművészeti Alap Kiadóvállalata, Budapest, 1962

References

Exhibition flyer
4 April through 28 June 2009 @ the Művészetek Háza in

Miskolc Miskolc ( , , ; Czech and sk, Miškovec; german: Mischkolz; yi, script=Latn, Mishkoltz; ro, Mișcolț) is a city in northeastern Hungary, known for its heavy industry. With a population of 161,265 (1 Jan 2014) Miskolc is the fourth larges ...

(includes a biographical time-line)

External links

Hungarian Art History
"Looking Down Into the Abyss: Bertalan Székely and the Perils of Love"

by Árpád Schauschek @ the Magyar Elektronikus Kõnyvtár {{DEFAULTSORT:Szekely, Bertalan 1835 births 1910 deaths Academic staff of the Hungarian University of Fine Arts History painters Portrait painters 19th-century Hungarian painters 20th-century Hungarian painters

Biography

Selected paintings

Writings

References

Further reading

External links