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Margit Kovács
(1902-1977) is a ceramist born in Győr, one of the reformers in
modern Hungarian ceramics. She started her studies of art at
Álmos Jaschik's private school, later continued them at Hertha
Bucher's private school in Vienna (1926-28) and in Munich, at
State School of Applied Arts, under Karl Killer and Adalbert
Niemeyer (1928-29).
After returning home,
she got connected with artistic life. She moved with her family
to Budapest and worked to the end of her life. She had major
exhibition for the first time in 1930 at the National Salon.
Criticism exalted her on the basis of her works as the most
talented young Hungarian ceramist. That year she won a prize for
the first time at the 4th exhibition of modern applied art in
Monza, which was followed by many tributes of respect. In 1932
she went to Copenhagen, later she continued her study-tour in
Paris, meanwhile she worked for the factory of Sevres for a few
months.
She gave account of her results achieved in art until then at
her first one- woman show organized at the Tamás Gallery in
1935.
Her early works are patterned ceramics of continuous surface
with colour glaze, creations on religious themes and genre
figures as well as some reliefs for niches, terracotta
sculptures and reliefs (Jakob's Dream, 1929; Sitting Little Girl,
c.1933). Her forms are closed, her colours are gloomy.
Besides the works of
plastic approach, with disciplined patterns, her art began to
evolve in looser, more decorative direction after 1936. This was
made possible primarily by her significant ecclesiastic and
secular commissions. One of her most significant creations of
religious art are the portals of the Saint Emeric Church of Győr
(1939-1940).
Besides the large
decorative tasks, she persistently formed her intimate art,
which incorporated everything from medieval art to folkart,
helped many-sided expression of her personality.
Joy at the beauty,
respect for material and virtuoso technique are characteristic
of her lifework. Man is in the centre of her art. She formed her
homorous, grotesque, dramatic scenes or those of conciseness of
folk- ballads, the characters of the genre-scenes, her pitchers
with packed decoration or figures, her plates, her reliefs taken
from folktales and life of the common people with unexhaustible
fantasy.
The material of her
permanent exhibition ranges from flower vases through murale
works and pitchers with animal figures, represen-tation of
angels in gothic tone, the expressive figure of the mother
anxious for her child to the realistic portraits and
representation of symbolic, religious or fabulous content, from
sculpture to engobe painted tile-pictures.
She modelled her figures
with power of good psychological observation, took precious good
care of realistic modelling of hands, which contrasts with
typifying solution of form of the head and the abstracting one
of the body or figure. The irresistible influence of her works
lies in their sincerity. |
