Mihály Zichy (; german: Michael von Zichy; 15 October 1827 – 28 February 1906) was a Hungarian painter and graphic artist. He is considered a notable representative of Hungarian romantic painting. He lived and worked primarily in St. Petersburg and Paris during his career. He is known for illustrating the Georgian epic poem ''

The Knight in the Panther's Skin ''The Knight in the Panther's Skin'' ( ka, ვეფხისტყაოსანი, tr literally "the one with the skin of a tiger") is a Georgian medieval epic poem, written in the 12th or 13th century by Georgia's national poet Shota Rustav ...

'' on an 1881 commission by the intelligentsia. By the time he had completed 35 pictures, he was so moved by the poem that he gave his works to the Georgian people as a gift.

Biography

During his law studies in Pest from 1842, Zichy attended

Jakab Marastoni Jakab Marastoni, originally Jacopo Antonio Marastoni (24 March 1804, Venice – 11 July 1860, Pest, Hungary, Pest) was an Italian-born Hungarian portrait painter and lithographer. Biography In 1830, he began his studies in Rome. He settled in ...

's art school as well. He went to

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

to study under

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 ...

in 1844. ''Lifeboat'', his first major work, was painted during this period. On Waldmüller's recommendation, Zichy was hired as an art teacher in

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

. He swore allegiance to freedom in 1849 by painting the portrait of

Lajos Batthyány Count Lajos Batthyány de Németújvár (; hu, gróf németújvári Batthyány Lajos; 10 February 1807 – 6 October 1849) was the first Prime Minister of Hungary. He was born in Pozsony (modern-day Bratislava) on 10 February 1807, and was e ...

, the first Hungarian prime minister. From 1850 onwards, he worked primarily as a retoucher. He also made pencil drawings, water colours, and portraits in oil. His erotic drawings are noted for having a warm intensity, as both members of the couple seem equal partners. The series on the Gatchina hunting, ordered by the Russian tsar, gained Zichy standing as a court artist. He founded a society to support painters in need. He painted '' Autodafé'' (1868) to express the horrors of the

Spanish inquisition The Tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition ( es, Tribunal del Santo Oficio de la Inquisición), commonly known as the Spanish Inquisition ( es, Inquisición española), was established in 1478 by the Catholic Monarchs, King Ferdinand ...

in earlier centuries. In 1871 he travelled through Europe, settling in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

in 1874. He painted '' Queen Elisabeth Laying Flowers by the Coffin of Ferenc Deák'' as a commission from Treffort. ''Drinking Bout of Henry III'' his next large-scale picture, came in 1875. ''The Victory of the Genius of Destruction'', painted for the

Paris Exhibition Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

, was banned by French authorities because of its daring

antimilitarist Antimilitarism (also spelt anti-militarism) is a doctrine that opposes war, relying heavily on a critical theory of imperialism and was an explicit goal of the First and Second International. Whereas pacifism is the doctrine that disputes (especi ...

message. Zichy left Paris in 1881 and returned to St. Petersburg, after short stays in

Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative c ...

, Vienna and his native Zala. That year he also visited

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the Capital city, capital and the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia, lying on the ...

, Caucasus Viceroyalty (today

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

). He was commissioned to illustrate the Georgian epic poem, ''

'', at the request of intelligentsia of the country. He painted 35 pictures in total. The publishing commission of the work of ''The Knight in the Panther's Skin'' chose 27 pictures to be included in the publication. The painter refused to take payment for the works, because he was so moved by the original poem. Instead, he gave his works to the Georgian people. From this time onward, Zichy mostly engaged in illustration work. Examples of works he illustrated include ''

The Tragedy of Man ''The Tragedy of Man'' ( hu, Az ember tragédiája) is a play (theatre), play written by the Hungary, Hungarian author Imre Madách. It was first published in 1861. The play is considered to be one of the major works of Hungarian literature and ...

'' by

Imre Madách Imre Madách de Sztregova et Kelecsény (20 January 1823 – 5 October 1864) was a Hungarian aristocrat, writer, poet, lawyer and politician. His major work is ''The Tragedy of Man'' (''Az ember tragédiája'', 1861). It is a dramatic poem appro ...

, in 1887, and twenty-four ballads of

János Arany János Arany (; archaic English: John Arany; 2 March 1817 – 22 October 1882) was a Hungarian poet, writer, translator and journalist. He is often said to be the "Shakespeare of ballads" – he wrote more than 102 ballads that have been transl ...

, 1894–98. Image:Mihaly_Zichy_Two_Lovers.jpg, "Lovers Embrace," in ink by Mihály Zichy Image:Vepkhistkaosani zichy.jpg,

Shota Rustaveli Shota Rustaveli ( ka, შოთა რუსთაველი, c. 1160 – after c. 1220), mononymously known simply as Rustaveli, was a medieval Georgian poet. He is considered to be the pre-eminent poet of the Georgian Golden Age and one of th ...

presents his epic poem to

Queen Tamar Tamar the Great ( ka, თამარ მეფე, tr, lit. "King Tamar") ( 1160 – 18 January 1213) reigned as the Queen of Georgia from 1184 to 1213, presiding over the apex of the Georgian Golden Age. A member of the Bagrationi dynasty ...

, 1880s Image:Zichy Mihály A démon fegyverei.jpg, ''The Triumph of the Genius of Destruction'' Image:Mihály Zichy Lifeboat 1847.jpeg, ''Lifeboat''

References

* Ilona Berkovits, ''Zichy, Mihály. Leben und Werk'', Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1964.

External links

Mihály Zichy's Illustrations for ''The Tragedy of Man''

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Zichy, Mihaly 1827 births 1906 deaths Hungarian illustrators Mihaly Burials at Kerepesi Cemetery 19th-century Hungarian painters Hungarian male painters People from Somogy County 19th-century Hungarian male artists