Béla Pállik (2 February 1845, Nagymihály – 27 July 1908,

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

) was a Hungarian artist, opera singer and theater director. He was best known for his

animal paintings An animal painter is an artist who specialises in (or is known for their skill in) the portrayal of animals. The ''OED'' dates the first express use of the term "animal painter" to the mid-18th century: by English physician, naturalist and writ ...

and was nicknamed "Birkapiktor" ("Sheep-painter").

Biography

He went to Budapest to pursue his art studies and work in the studios of , a German painter who was living there at the time. His parents were unable to support his studies for long, so he chose to support himself by selling copies of the old masters he made at the local museums, but eventually concluded that portrait painting would be most profitable. Soon after, he acquired an important patron; Count , a well-known art collector. He spent some time at the Count's estate in

Várpalota Várpalota (; German: Burgschloß) is a town in Western Hungary, in the Transdanubian county of Veszprém (county), Veszprém. It was a mining town during the Socialism, Socialist era, but the mines have been closed. Most of the citizens work in t ...

, doing portraits, some of his first animal paintings and

fresco Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...

es for the library at Zichy Castle. In 1867, he was able to enroll at the

Academy of Fine Arts Vienna The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna () is a public art school in Vienna, Austria. Founded in 1688 as a private academy, it is now a public university. The academy is also known for twice rejecting admission to a young Adolf Hitler in 1907 and 1908. ...

, thanks to a state grant that the Count was able to obtain for him from Prime Minister

Gyula Andrássy Count Gyula Andrássy de Csíkszentkirály et Krasznahorka (, 8 March 1823 – 18 February 1890) was a Hungarian statesman, who served as Prime Minister of Hungary (1867–1871) and subsequently as List of foreign ministers of Austria-Hungar ...

.Művészet, 1908
Biography and appreciation by Károly Lyka. His primary instructor there was Eduard von Engerth. In 1871, he received an extension of his grant and went to study at the

Academy of Fine Arts, Munich The Academy of Fine Arts, Munich (, also known as Munich Academy) is one of the oldest and most significant art academies in Germany. It is located in the Maxvorstadt district of Munich, in Bavaria, Germany. In the second half of the 19th centur ...

, where his teachers were

Wilhelm von Diez Albrecht Christoph Wilhelm von Diez (17 January 1839 – 25 February 1907) was a German painter and illustrator of the Munich School. Life He was born in Bayreuth. He attended a trade school in Munich, followed by the Polytechnic School (precur ...

and

Karl von Piloty Karl Theodor von Piloty (1 October 1826 – 21 July 1886) was a German painter, noted for his historical subjects, and recognised as the foremost representative of the realistic school in Germany. Life and work Piloty was born in Munich. His fath ...

. It was there that he decided to devote himself to animal painting. He had his first showing at the 1873 World Exposition in Vienna. In 1874, he returned to Budapest and soon became popular with the aristocracy, so he continued to do portraits along with paintings of their favorite dogs and horses.

Singing career

By 1880, he was successful enough to buy an old church, where he set up apartments and a studio.Szerelmem Budapest: "Church for Sale"
/ref> Unfortunately, the amount of work he had been doing created a severe case of

eyestrain Eye strain, also medically termed as asthenopia (), is a common eye condition characterized by non-specific symptoms such as fatigue, pain in or around the eyes, blurred vision, headache, and occasional double vision. These symptoms tend to ...

and, on his doctor's advice, he gave up painting for a while. Rather than remain inactive, he began to take singing lessons. In 1883, encouraged by his friends and family, he sold his studio (which later became a church again) and toured Germany; performing in several major cities, including

Weimar Weimar is a city in the state (Germany), German state of Thuringia, in Central Germany (cultural area), Central Germany between Erfurt to the west and Jena to the east, southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together w ...

, singing opera arias. He eventually learned thirty different operatic roles and was especially successful with the works of

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

. Düsseldorf became his base of operations and he spent his summers in

Nordkirchen Nordkirchen is a municipality in the district of Coesfeld, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Nordkirchen's most famous site is Schloss Nordkirchen, built in the 18th century for a local bishop and known as the Versailles of Westphalia, as it i ...

, at the

Esterházy The House of Esterházy, also spelled Eszterházy (), is a Hungarian nobility, Hungarian noble family with origins in the Middle Ages. From the 17th century, the Esterházys were the greatest landowner magnates of the Kingdom of Hungary, durin ...

estates. Once that he felt his eyes had sufficiently recovered, he had sheep brought to Düsseldorf and started painting again. With the help of Prince

Nikolaus Nicholas is a male name, the Anglophone version of an ancient Greek name in use since antiquity, and cognate with the modern Greek , . It originally derived from a combination of two Greek words meaning 'victory' and 'people'. In turn, the name ...

, he was able to re-establish himself in the art world. In 1887, he took up residence at the Esterházy Palace in Tata, where he continued to display his singing talent at the castle theater and directed some productions as well as painting the theater's ceiling. He also exhibited widely, including a show at the

Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon A beauty salon or beauty parlor is an establishment that provides Cosmetics, cosmetic treatments for people. Other variations of this type of business include hair salons, spas, day spas, ...

in 1890. That same year, he acquired property in the

Epreskert Art Colony Epreskert Art Colony (; the name means "Mulberry Garden" in Hungarian language, Hungarian) was an artists' colony in Budapest in the last decades of the 19th and the first half of the 20th century. Among the artists who worked and lived there the mo ...

and built a studio there. It is currently known as the "Atelier Kernstok" after a famous later resident, the artist

Károly Kernstok Károly Kernstok (23 December 1873, in Budapest – 9 June 1940, in Budapest) was a Hungary, Hungarian painter. In the early twentieth century, he was known for being among the leading groups of Hungarian painters known as the "Neos" and The Ei ...

References

External links

Arcadja Auctions: More works by Pállik.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pallik, Bela 1845 births 1908 deaths Painters from Austria-Hungary 19th-century Hungarian painters Hungarian painters of animals Hungarian male painters 19th-century Hungarian male artists

Biography

Singing career

References

Further reading

External links