Georgije "Đura" Jakšić (; 27 July 1832 – 16 November 1878) was a Serbian poet, painter, writer, dramatist and bohemian.

Biography

Đura Jakšić was born as Georgije Jakšić in Srpska Crnja,

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire, officially known as the Empire of Austria, was a Multinational state, multinational European Great Powers, great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the Habsburg monarchy, realms of the Habsburgs. Duri ...

(present-day

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

). His father was a

Serbian Orthodox The Serbian Orthodox Church ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Српска православна црква, Srpska pravoslavna crkva) is one of the autocephalous (ecclesiastically independent) Eastern Orthodox Christian churches. The majority of the populat ...

priest. Georgije's early education took place in

Timișoara Timișoara (, , ; , also or ; ; ; see #Etymology, other names) is the capital city of Timiș County, Banat, and the main economic, social and cultural center in Western Romania. Located on the Bega (Tisza), Bega River, Timișoara is consider ...

and

Szeged Szeged ( , ; see also #Etymology, other alternative names) is List of cities and towns of Hungary#Largest cities in Hungary, the third largest city of Hungary, the largest city and regional centre of the Southern Great Plain and the county seat ...

. He lived for a time in

Zrenjanin Zrenjanin ( sr-Cyrl, Зрењанин, ; ; ; ; ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the Central Banat District in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. The city urban area has a population of 67,129 inh ...

, where he began studying painting under Konstantin Danil. He later studied

fine arts In European academic traditions, fine art (or, fine arts) is made primarily for aesthetics or creativity, creative expression, distinguishing it from popular art, decorative art or applied art, which also either serve some practical function ...

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

and

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

but the revolution of 1848 interrupted his education, which he never finished. He took active part in the 1848 Revolution and was wounded while fighting in Srbobran. After the revolution he moved to

Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...

Principality of Serbia The Principality of Serbia () was an autonomous, later sovereign state in the Balkans that came into existence as a result of the Serbian Revolution, which lasted between 1804 and 1817. Its creation was negotiated first through an unwritten agre ...

, where he served as a schoolteacher, a lector in a state-owned printing office, and in various other jobs, although he was often unemployed. As a political liberal, he was persecuted by authorities. Jakšić died in 1878, having had taken part in the uprising against the Turks in

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

. Jakšić is one of the most expressive representatives of Serbian

Romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century. The purpose of the movement was to advocate for the importance of subjec ...

. According to Serbian literary critic Jovan Skerlić, Jakšiċ was influenced mainly by

Sándor Petőfi Sándor Petőfi ( []; né Petrovics; ; ; 1 January 1823 – most likely 31 July 1849) was a Hungarian poet and Classical Liberalism, liberal revolutionary. He is considered Hungary's national poet, and was one of the key figures of the Hungari ...

, the great Hungarian poet of the 1848 Revolution, and

Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824) was an English poet. He is one of the major figures of the Romantic movement, and is regarded as being among the greatest poets of the United Kingdom. Among his best-kno ...

's poetry depicting the

Greek War of Independence The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. In 1826, the Greeks were assisted ...

Literary works

Đura Jakšić wrote about forty short stories and three full-length dramas in verse on historical themes: *''

Stanoje Glavaš Stanoje Stamatović ( sr-cyr, Станоје Стаматовић), known as Stanoje Glavaš (Станоје Главаш; 21 February 1763 – 15 February 1815) was a Serbian hajduk and hero in the First Serbian Uprising. Life Glavaš was born i ...

'' (1878) *The Migration of the Serbs (''Seoba Srbalja'', 1864) *Elizabeth the Montenegrin Queen (''Jelisaveta kneginja crnogorska'', 1868) and the novel ''Warriors''. He also wrote poems, several of which are considered among the best of 19th-century Serbian poetry: '' Na Liparu'' (On the Lipar Hill), '' Put u Gornjak'' (The Road to Gornjak) and '' Mila'', which is dedicated to his first love Mila, who he intended to marry but never found courage to tell her. He also drew sketches of Mila, one of which later became his famous painting " Devojka u Plavom" (The Girl in Blue). Other notable poems are ''Otadžbina'' (Fatherland), ''Veče'' (Evening) and ''Ponoć'' (Midnight). Jakšić published ''Pripovetke'' (Short Stories), which was released posthumously in two volumes on two occasions, 1882–1883 and 1902 in Belgrade. Through them he expressed his pessimism and bitterness about the harsh blows life and people had dealt him. A popular motif in Jakšić's work is the Battle of Kosovo, Kosovo myth, eagles and Serbian epic poetry.

Artistic opus

The main influences on Jakšić were

Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (; ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), mononymously known as Rembrandt was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker, and Drawing, draughtsman. He is generally considered one of the greatest visual artists in ...

Diego Velázquez Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez (baptised 6 June 15996 August 1660) was a Spanish painter, the leading artist in the Noble court, court of King Philip IV of Spain, Philip IV of Spain and Portugal, and of the Spanish Golden Age. He i ...

and

Peter Paul Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens ( ; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish painting, Flemish artist and diplomat. He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque painting, Flemish Baroque tradition. Rubens' highly charged comp ...

. Jakšić's work varies in quality, ranging from masterpieces to half-professional paintings. According to Novak Radonić, the biggest problem with his painting is the improper use of anatomy. His most praised picture is " The Lady in Blue", which was used for promotion during the reopening of the National Museum of Serbia. Jakšić painted around 200 paintings. The following paintings by Đura Jakšić are part of the collection of the National Museum of Serbia in Belgrade: * Autoprotrait * Battle of Montenegris * Kosovo * Night Watch (''Na straži'') * ''Ubistvo Karađorđa'' (The Assassination of Karađorđe Petrović) * Strahinja Ban ( Strahinja Banović) * Knez Lazar Hrebeljanović ( Lazar of Serbia) * Girl in Blue (''Devojka u plavom'') * Portrait of director Ćirić * Car Dušan ( Stephen Uroš IV Dušan of Serbia) * Knjaz Milan Obrenović IV *Nevesta Baja Pivljanina (The bride of Bajo Pivljanin)

Legacy

Đura Jakšić is included in The 100 most prominent Serbs. His house in Srpska Crnja is currently used as a Memorial Museum and for poetry performances. Jakšić was one of the leaders of Serbian Romanticism and one of the country's greatest painters of that movement, together witk Novak Radonić. Although he wrote a number of loosely organized romantic plays, he is mostly known for his paintings and poetry. His poems include sonnets, lyrics, patriotic songs and full-scale epics. His favorite theme is nature and the patriotism. The award for the best book of poetry in the

Serbian language Serbian (, ) is the standard language, standardized Variety (linguistics)#Standard varieties, variety of the Serbo-Croatian language mainly used by Serbs. It is the official and national language of Serbia, one of the three official languages of ...

bears his name. Jakšić was also a teacher and a professor; schools and colleges throughout Serbia bear his name. A number of anecdotes about Jakšić was published.

Gallery

File:Đura Jakšić - Knez Lazar, 1857‒1859, Narodni muzej.jpg, '' knez Lazar Hrebeljanović'', 1857‒1859 File:Đura Jakšić - Devojka u plavom, 1856, Narodni muzej u Beogradu, Zbirka Joce Vujića.jpg, ''Devojka u plavom (Girl in Blue),'' 1856 File:Đura Jakšić - Odmor posle boja (Karaula), 1876, Narodni muzej.jpg, ''Odmor posle boja (karaula)'', 1876 File:Đura Jakšić - Autoportret, 1857‒1858, Narodni muzej.jpg, ''Self-portrait'', 1857‒1858 File:Đura Jakšić - Takovski ustanak, 1876‒1878, Narodni muzej.jpg, ''The Uprising at Takovo,'' 1876‒1878 File:Đura Jakšić - Crnogorac, 1875, Narodni muzej Crne Gore, Cetinje.jpg, '' Montenegrin'', 1875 File:Đura Jakšić - Ustanak Crnogoraca, 1862, Galerija Matice srpske.jpg, ''Uprising of Montenegrins'', 1862

References

* Translated and adapted from Jovan Skerlić's ''Istorija Nove Srpske Književnosti''/History of New Serbian Literature (Belegrade, 1914, 1921), pages 310–319.

External links

Đura Jakšić's grave at ''Belgrade Graveyards website

A collection of scanned books by Jakšić

Translated works by Đura Jakšić
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jaksic, Dura 1832 births 1878 deaths Emigrants from the Austrian Empire People from Nova Crnja Serbian dramatists and playwrights Serbian male short story writers Serbian short story writers Serbian male painters Serbian male poets 19th-century Serbian poets 19th-century Serbian dramatists and playwrights 19th-century Serbian painters 19th-century short story writers 19th-century Serbian male writers Poètes maudits Burials at Belgrade New Cemetery 19th-century Serbian male artists