The second chapter in the three-part exhibition series dedicated to Antal János Kazinczy (1914, Timișoara – 2008, Violes) presents new selections from the artist’s rich and multifaceted oeuvre. Kazinczy’s life journey — from Transylvania through Hungary, Austria and Germany to France — was as diverse and dynamic as his artistic output. The series, launched in 2024, aims to showcase this remarkable legacy in a structured, multi-year format.
While last year’s exhibition followed a chronological perspective, focusing on works from the 1970s to the early 2000s, this year’s selection is organized thematically. Outstanding paintings, drawings and enamel pieces are brought together from the meticulously catalogued estate overseen by the artist’s son, Árpád János Kazinczy. This extensive material allows us to highlight transitions and connections across the oeuvre while avoiding repetition, offering a fresh view of an artist whose work abounds in masterpieces.
The three gallery rooms present themes ranging from classical European mythology and the realm of dreams and magical illusions to influences from East Asian calligraphy. These references, motifs and forms appear as reinterpretations filtered through Kazinczy’s personal history and the visual culture of his time. His abstraction reflects on belonging, spirituality, cultural memory, and the dimensions of existence — descent, aspiration and transience — through both the evocation of and departure from recognizable forms. Meanwhile, in the fourth room, figuration re-emerges through motifs that also resonate in the abstract works. Here, the journey begins with a specific historical event: the 1956 Hungarian Revolution and War of Independence.