Memories of Fleeting Time – The Art of László Bornemisza
László Bornemisza’s unique artistic vision brings to life a fairytale world waiting to be explored on his canvases. His paintings depict bustling streets among oddly shaped, golden-lit houses reaching for the sky, where his characters—ranging from innocent-looking, pigtail-wearing little girls to brothel dwellers, nuns, and priests—come to life. Bornemisza once described his artistic philosophy as follows: “To see the world through the naive eyes of a child, and thus highlight its grotesque elements.”
A recurring figure in his paintings is Lumikki, a curious and wide-eyed young girl. As István Kerékgyártó wrote about her in 1968: “This little girl with pigtails is like the youngest daughter in fairy tales, the one who overcomes all obstacles.”
Despite his profound impact, no monograph has been published on László Bornemisza (1910–1995) until now. To accompany this exhibition, an extensive and detailed study on his life and work—written by art historian Lilla Szabó and coordinated by gallery owner János Bodó—will be published. This volume features over 300 of his works, while more than 100 of his paintings will be on display at the exhibition.
Who was László Bornemisza, now rediscovered 30 years after his passing, and whose life’s work is being presented in this retrospective at Bodó Gallery and Auction House? His paintings give the impression of a child playfully teasing us, pressing their thumb to the tip of their nose and wiggling their fingers in jest—smiling, playful, kind, and affectionate. Lumikki, a character named by writer Ervin Lázár, serves as a stage announcer, narrating the events unfolding behind the curtains.
Critics have often compared Bornemisza’s distinctive artistic style to that of Arnold Gross and István Pekáry. However, there was someone else they could have noticed—yet didn’t—perhaps because they were unaware of Ferenc Jánossy (1926–1983) or because they deliberately avoided mentioning his name. Jánossy, who fled to Basel after participating in the revolution, painted works similar to the “demonstrative” style of James Ensor, an aesthetic often associated with Bornemisza’s art by foreign and later Hungarian art historians and critics.
What does this term mean? It refers to a mass of figures that seem to surge toward the viewer from the canvas. They approach us like reality itself—celebrants, protesters, quarrelers, and voices in an unending dialogue. One need only compare Ensor’s monumental painting Christ’s Entry into Brussels (1889) with Bornemisza’s Parade or Jánossy’s Basel Carnival, Dance of Death, Liestal Carnival to see the connection.
In 1960, Bornemisza traveled to Poland, Italy, Finland, and Sweden for artistic study trips, and his paintings were sold out at every exhibition. What did collectors see in his work? Perhaps it was a duality—the duality of the world itself—that they may not have been able to articulate, but which they could sense as something “in the air.”
Fifteen, twenty, thirty years after World War II, when Europe was finding itself again—after a long period of uncertainty and a future that seemed impossible to define—a completely new world was emerging, distinct from what existed before 1938. Bornemisza lived within his time, yet he also managed to exist outside it, creating his own frame of reference beyond (and within) the confines of the socialist system.
This was an era rising from the ashes of war. It was an age reflected in films such as Ingmar Bergman’s The Seventh Seal (1957), Federico Fellini’s 8½ (1963), Pier Paolo Pasolini’s Trilogy of Life (1971–1974), and Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s Fear Eats the Soul (1973)—films that depict an unredeemed, perhaps unredeemable world. They wave at us from the past, perhaps offering encouragement, posing questions, and seeking new answers.
And so, too, do the paintings of László Bornemisza.
Curator: Dr. Lilla Szabó
Co-Curator: Zsófia Nóra Nagy
Exhibition Dates: March 6, 2025 – March 29, 2025
Opening Hours:
Monday – Friday: 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM
Saturday: 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM