Istvan Medgyaszay
Encyclopedia
Istvan Medgyaszy was a Hungarian
architect and writer. He was one of the first to employ Hungarian folk idioms, particularly from Transylvania
, and combine them with influences ranging from the far east to organic architecture
.
Medgyaszay studied at the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts and also at the Budapest Academy. He won the commission for the design of the national pantheon in 1903 and graduated the following year. After further studies abroad he returned home and began working on the combination of reinforced concrete technology with folkloric design elements. He also travelled to northern Africa and India to study the architecture there.
Medgyaszay had a successful academic career and was highly regarded until the communist takeover in the late 1940s when he was criticised for his apolitical or so-called formalist approach to art. He stopped working in 1959 and died three weeks later.
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
architect and writer. He was one of the first to employ Hungarian folk idioms, particularly from Transylvania
Transylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
, and combine them with influences ranging from the far east to organic architecture
Organic architecture
Organic architecture is a philosophy of architecture which promotes harmony between human habitation and the natural world through design approaches so sympathetic and well integrated with its site that buildings, furnishings, and surroundings become part of a unified, interrelated...
.
Medgyaszay studied at the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts and also at the Budapest Academy. He won the commission for the design of the national pantheon in 1903 and graduated the following year. After further studies abroad he returned home and began working on the combination of reinforced concrete technology with folkloric design elements. He also travelled to northern Africa and India to study the architecture there.
Medgyaszay had a successful academic career and was highly regarded until the communist takeover in the late 1940s when he was criticised for his apolitical or so-called formalist approach to art. He stopped working in 1959 and died three weeks later.
Main works
- National pantheon, 1903, not built (won 5 European prizes for this plan)
- Milan exposition pavilion, 1906
- Artists homes, Gödöllő, 1904–06
- Theatre, Veszprém, 1908
- Theatre, Sopron, 1908–09
- Budapest Opera House, rebuilding, 1912
- Theatre, Miskolc, rebuilding, 1922
- Various church buildings: Rárósmúlyad (1910); Ógyalla (1912); PüspökladányPüspökladányPüspökladány is the sixth largest town of Hajdú-Bihar county in North Eastern Hungary with a population of approximately 16,000 people. It is located southeast of Debrecen at the juncture of three regions: Sárrét, Hortobágy and Nagykunság. It is an important transportation hub at the junction of...
(1921); KenderesKenderes-Location, geography:The town is located along Route 4, halfway between the cities of Debrecen and Szolnok. It lies in the Great Hungarian Plain, thus its geography is defined by flat expanses. The town is primarily surrounded by agricultural zones...
(1922); Csillaghegy (1935)