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Csontvary

An Extraordinary Master of Hungarian Painting

October 21 - December 12, 2010

Csontváry was an artist poised at the turn of the twentieth century. The richness and complexity in his works cannot be characterized utilizing the conventions of stylistic categories. Realistic observation, emphasis on changing light, the decorative, orgiastic use of color characteristic of Post-Impressionism, the large-scale handling of form and the strong diffraction of the colors often appear simultaneously on the same canvas.

The exhibition invited us to discover the works of this extraordinary Hungarian artist, who wrote poetry with paintings that reflect his vision beyond the currents of the period, his unique colors, his symbolic narrative, and the ""divine voice"" he claims to have heard.

"As a schoolboy I hated memorizing by heart; I looked at the Bible as a tale, and I rather longed to be outside in nature to listen to the warbling of the nightingale, to gaze at a flower here and there, where the polliniferous petals were busy with whole swarms of butterflies, bees, bumblebees and insects."

Exhibition Catalogue

Csontváry

Csontváry

Csontváry was an artist of the turn of the century. The richness and complexity in his works cannot be characterised based on stylistic categories. Realistic observation, emphasis on the changing...

Happy Republic Day!

Happy Republic Day!

Celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, Pera Museum invites artist Benoît Hamet to reinterpret key pieces from its collections, casting a humorous eye over ‘historical’ events, both imagined and factual.

Game of Mangala

Game of Mangala

Three figures in Eastern dress are shown in repose against an exotic landscape, smoking pipes and playing mangala. Inventories of the royal collections from 1739 identify the members of this group as the royal eunuch Matthias and two odalisques. 

İstanbul: Before & After

İstanbul: Before & After

Selected from the Suna and İnan Kıraç Foundation Photography Collection, we present the landscapes and places in Istanbul photographs, dating from the 1850s to the 1980s, together with their present-day views!