Viktor Madarász (14 December 1830 – 10 January 1917) was a Hungarian painter in the Romantic style. He is best known for historical scenes and portraits.

Biography

He was born in Csetnek, and descended from an impoverished noble family originating in Gömör és Kis-Hont County. His father, , was an iron manufacturer and craftsman. Originally, he was destined for a career in law and went to study in

Pozsony Bratislava (, also ; ; german: Preßburg/Pressburg ; hu, Pozsony) is the capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approximately 140% of ...

.Brief biography
(with a biography of his daughter, Adeline) @ Budapest XV District Blog. When the Hungarian Revolution began, he and his brother (also named András) left school to join the struggle. He was a participant in numerous actions, became a Second Lieutenant and was present during the surrender at Világos. After hiding out briefly, he returned home on foot and joined his family in

Pécs Pécs ( , ; hr, Pečuh; german: Fünfkirchen, ; also known by other #Name, alternative names) is List of cities and towns of Hungary#Largest cities in Hungary, the fifth largest city in Hungary, on the slopes of the Mecsek mountains in the countr ...

. He continued with his legal studies, but also began taking lessons from a local artist. In 1853, he enrolled for preparatory work at the

Academy of Fine Arts, Vienna The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna (german: link=no, Akademie der bildenden Künste Wien) is a public art school in Vienna, Austria. History The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna was founded in 1692 as a private academy modelled on the Accademia di Sa ...

. Two years later, he entered the history painting class of

Ferdinand Georg Waldmüller Ferdinand Georg Waldmüller (; 15 January 1793 – 23 August 1865) was an Austrian painter and writer. Waldmüller was one of the most important Austrian painters of the Biedermeier period. Career In 1807, Waldmüller attended the Academy o ...

.Brief biography
@ Hungarian Visual Arts. His first historical painting, ''

Kuruc Kuruc (, plural ''kurucok''), also spelled kurutz, refers to a group of armed anti-Habsburg insurgents in the Kingdom of Hungary between 1671 and 1711. Over time, the term kuruc has come to designate Hungarians who advocate strict national ind ...

and Labanc'' (depicting brothers fighting on opposite sides), was warmly received. In 1856, he went to Paris, where he studied in the studios of

Léon Cogniet Léon Cogniet (29 August 1794 – 20 November 1880) was a French history and portrait painter. He is probably best remembered as a teacher, with more than one hundred notable students. Biography He was born in Paris. His father was a painter ...

and at the

École des Beaux Arts École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Savoi ...

. He was also influenced by the style of

Paul Delaroche Hippolyte-Paul Delaroche (17 July 1797 – 4 November 1856) was a French painter who achieved his greater successes painting historical scenes. He became famous in Europe for his melodramatic depictions that often portrayed subjects from English ...

. His painting ''The Mourning of László Hunyadi'' won a medal at the 1861 Salon. He returned to Hungary in 1870, but his style was heavily criticized for being too French, and revolutionary fervor had lessened considerably. In 1873, after especially harsh criticism of his work ''

Gábor Bethlen Gabriel Bethlen ( hu, Bethlen Gábor; 15 November 1580 – 15 November 1629) was Prince of Transylvania from 1613 to 1629 and Duke of Opole from 1622 to 1625. He was also King-elect of Hungary from 1620 to 1621, but he never took control of ...

Among the Scholars'', he retired from painting and took over his father's business. He was so discouraged that many of his best works were virtually given away. In 1902, his business went bankrupt and was sold at auction. The following year, he attempted to restart his artistic career by painting portraits, but they were not up to his previous standards. He died in

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 ...

, totally forgotten, during the First World War.

Selected paintings

File:Madarász Kuruc és labanc 1855.jpg, ''Kuruc and Labanc'' File:Hunyadi László a ravatalon-Madarász.jpg, ''The Mourning of
László Hunyadi'' File:Madarász, Viktor - The Dream of an Exile (Thököly's Dream, 1856).jpg, '' Thököly's Dream'' File:Madarász Dózsa's People 1868.jpg, '' Dózsa's People''

References

External links

*
An appreciation of Madarász
by Ödön Kacziány @ Művészet {{DEFAULTSORT:Madarasz Viktor 1830 births 1917 deaths Burials at Kerepesi Cemetery 19th-century Hungarian painters 20th-century Hungarian painters History painters Hungarian portrait painters People from Rožňava District Hungarian male painters 19th-century Hungarian male artists 20th-century Hungarian male artists

Biography

Selected paintings

References

Further reading

External links