Nike of Samothrace, India ink wash
“We must accept that we cannot leave behind our actions, that we cannot absolve ourselves, and that our souls are guided by an incomprehensible power. We must consequently act with the awareness that we are part of the existing part of the world which is singular, and has come to recognize the source of existence, that is, the law; with an awareness that in faith and knowledge, in matter and spirit, we carry divine, spiritual substance.” - Borsos Miklós (August 13th, 1906 – January 27th, 1990)
Bud, marble
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Wind at Lake Balaton, bronze
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Borsos Miklós, a Hungarian artist born in what is today Sibiu, Romania would go on to be honored with numerous awards including Artist of Merit of the Hungarian People's Republic in 1967. At the exhibit here in Budapest at the Várkert Bazár, we are taken on a whirlwind tour of his works, starting with his early paintings, which would be largely abandoned for his love of sculpture, and leading us through a tribute to nature in abstract, simple, and yet powerful forms.
From his undulating miniature copper plate embossed to mimick the sun, waves, and plants to his theme of the masculine-feminine in marble, from the powerful copper repoussés highlighting themes of nature, animal, man, myth, and legend to the definite, yet fleeting lines of ink outlining the "Nike of Samothrace," Miklós pays tribute to the creator and the created. The most impressive pieces for me would have to have been the marble works of "Birth," "Bud," and "Fertility," followed by the sensuous and exquisite "Erato"- two delineated marble torsos of a male and female joined together in a subtle, eloquent statement.
From his undulating miniature copper plate embossed to mimick the sun, waves, and plants to his theme of the masculine-feminine in marble, from the powerful copper repoussés highlighting themes of nature, animal, man, myth, and legend to the definite, yet fleeting lines of ink outlining the "Nike of Samothrace," Miklós pays tribute to the creator and the created. The most impressive pieces for me would have to have been the marble works of "Birth," "Bud," and "Fertility," followed by the sensuous and exquisite "Erato"- two delineated marble torsos of a male and female joined together in a subtle, eloquent statement.
photos
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FEATURE STORIES
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movies
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There was also the miniature bronze, "Wind at the Lake Balaton," so delicate as to take the breath away (the full-scale version stands at Balatonfüred), and then the full-size lower torso sculpted in marble with top left unfinished for a dazzling juxtaposition to the otherwise smooth simplicity of the female form. But Miklós’ bronze "Aphrodite" may have to take the prize for most stunning.
The exhibit itself stated, “The beauty of Borsos’s female figures offers a pantheistic praise of the created world.” This theme was paramount as you perused the exhibit. However, Miklós own words, as shown at the beginning of this entry, probably offer a far greater assessment of what his works achieved:
“Art, a sculpture, or a painting must show something we could not otherwise see or feel.” - Borsos Miklós
If you can make it, this is an exhibit well worth the while.
This exhibition was made possible via the cooperation of Kovács Gábor Art Foundation and the Rómer Flóris Museum of Art and History, Győr, and I thank balatontipp.hu and kogart.org for images.
Várkert Bazár Testőrpalota | 1013 Budapest, Ybl Miklós tér 2.
Nyitva tartás: kedd-vasárnap: 10.00-18.00
Szent György, embossed copper
Aphrodite, bronze
All photos: https://www.balatontipp.hu/balatoni_hirek/kogart-tihany-az-eddigi-legnagyobb-anyaggal-tisztelegnek-borsos-miklos-muveszete-elott/ and http://www.kogart.hu/alkotas/borsos-miklos/szamothrakei-nike
