Tivadar Csontváry-Kosztka is considered to be one of Hungary’s Greatest Painter that did not belong to a specific school of art but is often most related to Post-Impressionism, in his own words though he described his style and journey as the ‘sunway’ (Napút). Not only did he create this Hungarian word, he defined it as the way the light from the moon and sun interact with the nature and objects around it. He was born in Kisszeben, current day Sebinov, Sylvakia, on July 5, 1853 and passed away in Budapest on June 20, 1919 at the age of 65.
He did not begin as a painter, in fact he did not begin to study it until he was the age of forty. He originally was a pharmacist, until he had a mystical experience in 1880. Although just a myth this mystical experience is said to have been spurred on by a coworker in the pharmacy. It is said that he was drawing on some of the containers around the office and a coworker told him as a joke he was a born painter. At this point a heavenly voice told him He ‘would be the greatest painter of the world, greater than Raphael’. Yet when he applied to be a student at an art school, he was rejected, but this did not discourage him. Instead he just taught himself for twenty years as he worked as a successful pharmacists saving his money to support his Painter dream. During this time he visited Rome to see the paintings of Raphael, which just further encouraged him believing he could easily out do the famous artist and become more famous than him.
He studied art for fourteen years visiting artist and going to Munich, Karlsruhe, Paris, Italy, Dalmatia, Syria and Egypt. He developed and appreciation and love for nature and the colors they depict during the light of day and night, developing a strong motif of trees and water. His first completed painting was a Self-Portrait completed in 1896 and his final painting was completed in 1909 titled Tengerparti Sétalovaglás, Horse Ride by the Seaside. He was considered neurotic and obsessive, and throughout his time painting, he slowly entered insanity causing him to lose everything. During his life he never sold any of his paintings or exhibited any of them, and by 1916 he was bankrupt and forced to sell his pharmacy, which he still had a hand in despite his travels, in 1917 as his health began to rapidly deteriorate. He was invited to be a part of the coronation of Charles IV so he could later paint it, but unfortunately he was too sick and passed away in poverty in 1919.
It was only by the grace of a young architect named Gedeon Gerlóczy who at the time recognized the talent of the late mostly unknown painter. It was not until 1930 that his art truly started to gain traction though. Gerlóczy set up an exhibit staring the artist, and ever since then people found a deep appreciation for the artist naming him one of Hungry’s greatest.
In the year 1977 Hungary decided to celebrate the artist by putting his self portrait on a silver 200 Forint. He was also commemorated along with Ádám Mányoki (1673-1756), Joseph Rippl-Rónai, and the Hungarian National Museum which just celebrated their 175th anniversary. The original engraving for his image was created by József Garányi, it was created by the BP. Hungarian mint in Budapest, Hungary during the People’s Republic time period (1949-1989), and was produced by Állami Pénzveró. Although this coin is no longer in circulation, the United States mint 30,000 of each of the four commemoratives with 5,000 of each being proof. The coin is now worth around $50 USD.
Sources:
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Tivadar Csontváry-Kosztka". Encyclopedia Britannica, 1 Jul. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Tivadar-Csontvary-Kosztka. Accessed 6 December 2023.
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