VILT, Tibor

VILT, Tibor
sculptor
(15 December, 1905, Budapest – 13 August, 1983, Budapest)
1922–1925: College of Technical Arts, Budapest; 1925–1927: College of Fine Arts, Budapest, masters: Lajos Mátra and Zsigmond Strobl Kisfaludi; 1965: Munkácsy Award; 1970: Meritorious Artist Award; 1978: Outstanding Artist Award; 1980: Kossuth Award. Between 1928 and 1930 he was one of the scholarship holders at the Roman Hungarian Academy. In 1935 he married Erzsébet Schaár, who also worked as a sculptor. After 1945 he participated in the work of the Európai Iskola (European School). In 1957, due to his activities during the revolution, he was relocated. In the 1960’s he became one of the reformers of Hungarian sculpturing, and was the role model of the young generation of artists of the era. Even though Vilt was one of the so-called Roman scholarship holders, he never became a committed member of the “Roman School”. A number of characteristically archaically inspired portraits were produced during the beginning of the young artist’s career (Önarckép /Self-Portrait/, 1926). He was later influenced by the views of Pál Pátzay, and he himself also turned towards classicism (Lampel Béláné portréja /The portrait of Mrs. Béla Lampel/, 1936). This however proved to be a short transitional period, after which, in 1936, he already molded one of his first dynamically expressive small sculptures the Gondolkodó (Philosopher). In the following years the sculptures and relief works produced by him were able to express the everyday feelings and emotions of the artist to an ever-growing extent. After the end of the Second World War an entire series of works depicted that he had reached the first flowering period of his career (Háború Után II. /After the War II. / 1945; Gyermekfej háború után /Child’s head after war/ 1946; Bucsú/Figura székekkel /Farewell / Figure with chairs/, 1947). The 1950’s meant a break point in his career to a certain extent. While he partook in the artistic life of the era, i.e. he produced the group of sculptures found at the Ministry of Defense (1951) and won the tender announced by the energy plant of Tiszalök (1955), within his workshop (away from public scrutiny) he produced a number of shocking small sculptures and relief works (Ketrec /Cage/, 1949; Bohóc virággal /Clown with flowers/, 1949; Szorongás /Anxiety/, 1950; Közöny /Indifference/, 1952). His works produced in this period, similar to the compositions inspired by the revolution of 1956 (A kentaur halála /The death of the Centaur/, 1956; Szék és ablak/Börtön /Chair and window / Prison/, 1956; Tanktaposta arc /Tank flatened face/, 1956) awaited their faith, for quite a while, until the his first exhibition held in the middle of the 1960’s, either in plastilines or as plaster works. During the course of the 1960’s he prepared an entire series of small sculptures reminiscent of anthropomorphous tools (Satu és Szobor III. /Vice and Statue III./ 1965) and by the end of the decade he received opportunities to produce a number of grand scale statues as well (Dorottya; 1967, Galambdúc, 1968). Around the end of the decade, in part, due to the influence of Erzsébet Schaár, he began experimenting with glass as a new material (Három Forma /Three Forms/, 1970). The 1970’s were the period of self-accomplishment in the career of Vilt. By this time he was unanimously regarded as well known artist of the time. He intended the work entitled Változatok I–V. (Variants I-V.), exhibited at the 2^nd Small Sculpture Biennale of Budapest, as a comprehensive summarization of his entire life work. During the course of his final years he was capable of transforming once again, thus a number of sculpture works produced with eclectic design, and portraying an apocalyptic mood (Emberevő, /Man-eater/, 1982; Sovány Kurva /Thin Whore/, 1982).

One-Man Shows
1929 • Gallery Tamás, Budapest [with János Kmetty]
1936 • Ernst Museum, Budapest [with Jenő Barcsay]
1965 • King Saint Stephen Museum, Székesfehérvár (HU) (cat.)
1966 • Paris [with Endre Domanovszky]
1967 • Collegium Hungaricum, Vienna [with Béla Kondor and István Gádor]
1968 • XXXIV. The Venice Biennale, Venice
1970 • Műcsarnok, Budapest • Gallery of Miskolc, Miskolc (HU) • Gallery of the University, Debrecen (HU)
1974 • Petőfi Literary Museum, Budapest [with Gyula Gulyás] • Museum of Tihany, Tihany (HU) (cat.)
1975 • Dorottya Gallery, Budapest [with Gyula Gulyás and János Kass]
1977 • Wilhelm Lehmbruck Museum [with Erzsébet Schaár], Duisburg • Szent István Király Múzeum [with Erzsébet Schaár], Székesfehérvár (HU) • Nagy Balogh J. Exhibition Room, Budapest
1978 • Hungarian National Gallery, Budapest-workshop, Budapest
1980 • Celldömölk (HU) • Műcsarnok, Budapest
1983 • Gallery of Miskolc, Miskolc (HU)
1985 • G. Zacheta, Warsaw
1986 • Csók Gallery, Székesfehérvár (HU) (memorial exhibition, cat.).

Selected Group Exhibitions:
from 1927 • at the exhibitions of the ”Képzőművészek Új Társasága”, Budapest
1946-1947 • at the exhibitions of the ”Európai Iskola”, Budapest
1948 • Recent Trends of the Hungarian Art, National Salon, Budapest • Towards the Public Art, Former Műcsarnok, Budapest
from 1950 • at all kinds of exhibitions of Hungarian fine arts
1957 • Spring Exhibition (Tavaszi Tárlat), Műcsarnok, Budapest • Constructivist Tendencies. Hungarian Art of the Twentieth Century, National Salon, Budapest
1966 • Hungarian Sculpture 1920-1945. Hungarian Art of the Twentieth Century, Csók Gallery, Székesfehérvár (HU)
1967 • International Sculptor Biennial, Middelheim (NL)
1971 • 100 Jahre Kunst in Ungarn, Museum am Ostwald, Dortmund
1973 • Contemporary Hungarian Sculpture 1957-1972, Puskin Museum, Moscow • Európai Iskola (European School). Hungarian Art of the Twentieth Century, Csók Gallery, Székesfehérvár(HU) • II. International Biennial for Small Sculpture, Műcsarnok, Budapest
1977 • Hungarian Art 1945-49. Hungarian Art of the Twentieth Century, Csók Gallery, Székesfehérvár (HU)
1978 • Hungarian Sculpture, Műcsarnok, Budapest
1980 • Tendencies 1970-1980. New art in 1970, Óbuda Gallery, Budapest
1983 • The Years of Development around 1960. Hungarian Art of the Twentieth Century, Csók Gallery, Székesfehérvár (HU)
1984 • The (unknown) "Európai Iskola", Budapest Galéria, Budapest
1993 • We, "East French" - Hungarian Art 1981-89. Hungarian Art of the Twentieth Century, Csók Gallery, Székesfehérvár (HU).

Works in Public Places
Christ, sculptures of saints (around 1928, Church of Gyárváros, Győr (HU), destroyed in 1944)
Reliefs [limestone, around 1932, roman catholic church, Balatonboglár (HU)]
Saint Francis and Saint Anthony (limestone, around 1932, Saint Anthony Church Pasarét, Budapest)
Ányos Jedlik (terracotta, 1935, Hospital of "Order of Saint John of God", Budapest)
Saint Paul the Hermit (1937, Gellért Hill, Budapest, lost)
Angels (limestone, 1939 körül, Fire-department, 9. distr. Budapest)
Saint Michael (painted wood, around 1940, Albertfalva, Saint Michael Church, Budapest)
Tomb of Endre Deér (around 1940, Kerepesi Cemetery, Budapest)
Tomb of Sándor Hunyady (1943, Kerepesi Cemetery, Budapest)
Sculpture (bronze, 1951, on the facade of the Ministry of Defence, Budapest, demolished)
Leonardo da Vinci (limestone with lead relief, memorial tablet, 1954, 8. distr. Leonardo da Vinci street, Budapest)
The Current [bronze, 1955-1958, Tiszalök (HU)]
Girl with compasses [stone-relief, 1958, University of Miskolc, Miskolc (HU)]
József Eötvös [bronze, 1961, Ercsi (HU)]
Space Sculpture (welded iron, 1963, MÁVAUT-station, Budapest)
Relief (limestone, 1964, 13. distr. Trade School , Budapest)
Relief [aluminium, 1965, Hotel Karancs, Salgótarján (HU)]
Soviet heroic monument (limestone, 1965, Budapest-Pesterzsébet, in 1992 removed to the Cemetery of Rákoskeresztúr)
Relief (limestone, around 1965, 10. distr. housing estate at the Kőrösi Csoma Sándor road, Budapest)
Relief (metal, 1966, 5. distr. Apáczai Csere János street, Budapest)
István Szőnyi [bronze, 1966, Zebegény (HU) in unknown place]
Imre Madách (bronze, 1966, 7. distr. Madách Grammar-School, Budapest)
Prometheus [bronze, stone, 1967, University of Pécs, Pécs (HU)]
Széchenyi (bronze, 1967, 5. distr, Budapest)
Reading couple (bronze, 1968, Jókai Grammar School, Komárom)
Composition with three figure (bronze, 1971, Csepel, Budapest)
Atlas (bronze, 1971, Topographical-Hall, Budapest)
Iron sculpture [iron, 1972, University of Miskolc, Miskolc (HU)]
László Kelemen (limestone, 1972, OSZMI, Budapest)
Csokonai [bronze, 1972, Rákóczi Secondary School, Sárospatak (HU)]
György Dózsa memorial  [plastic, 1972, Siklós (HU)]
Madách (bronze, 1973, Margitsziget, Budapest)
Space Sculpture (poliester, 1974, SOTE, Budapest)
Dr. György Csanády [aluminium, 1975, College of Polytechnic, Győr (HU)]
Mihály Munkácsy [bronze, 1975, Békéscsaba (HU)]
Cleft prism (Hasított hasáb) [metal, 1975, CSOMITERV, Szeged (HU)]
Lenin [aluminium, 1975, Székesfehérvár (HU)]
József Pécsi (stone, aluminium relief, 1976, Budapest, 5. distr., Dorottya street)
Lenin (bronze, 1976, Hajdúböszörmény, pulled down)
Sitting boys [bronze, 1977, Hospital, Szombathely (HU)]
Wireless telegraph (stone, concrete, steel, 1977, Budapest after 1990 in commercial use)
Gyula Kaesz (linden, 1977, Budapest)
Pál Gulyás (bronze, 1977, Margitsziget, Budapest)
Antal Szerb (bronze, 1977, 11. distr., Szerb A. Secondary School, Budapest)
Sándor Doktor [bronze, 1978, Pécs (HU)]
Gagarin [bronze, 1978, Memorial Park, Baja (HU)]
Memorial project [steel, 1979, Statue Park, Dunaújváros (HU)]
Heine [limestone, 1979, Somberek (HU)]
Wireless telegraph [steel, granite, 1979, Csepel (HU)]
Állvány és szobor [wood, 1980, Statue Park, Nagyatád (HU)]
Woman with snake (bronze, 1980, Hospital of South Pest, Budapest)
Memorial Sculpture [limestone, chrome steel, 1980, Transformer Station, Albertirsa (HU)]
Ferenc Schafarzik (bronze, 1981, Budapest University of Technology, Budapest)
Győző Mihailich (bronze, 1981, Budapest University of Technology, Budapest)
Clock (concrete, steel, 1983, Őrmező)
Standing woman figure [limestone, 1983, Siófok (HU)]
Miner memorial [iron, 1986, Miner Museum, Tatabánya (HU)].

Works in Public Collections:
Municipal Picture Gallery, Budapest
King Saint Stephen Museum, Székesfehérvár (HU)
Janus Pannonius Museum, Pécs (HU)
Hungarian National Gallery, Budapest
Wilhelm Lehmbruck Museum, Duisburg.

Bibliography:
Oltványi-Átringer, I.: ~ szobrai, Magyar Művészet, 1938
Pátzay, P.: ~ szobrai, Tér és Forma, 1943/9.
Rabinovszky, M.: Beck András és ~, Miroir, 1948
Kovalovszky, M.: ~ (kat., szerk., Szent István Király Múzeum, Székesfehérvár, 1965)
Haits, G.: Műteremlátogatás ~nál, Művészet, 1966/2.
Frank, J.: A XXXIV. Velencei Biennálé magyar pavilonjának kiállítása, Budapest, 1969
J. Cassou-Kovács, P.: ~, Budapest, 1972
Néray, K.: Előrelépések és visszacsatolások (kat., bev. tan., Tihanyi Múzeum, Tihany, 1974)
Kerékgyártó, I.: Megközelítések. ~ monumentális szobrai, Művészet, 1977/10.
Baranyi, J.: ~ portrék (kat., bev., Műcsarnok, 1980)
Sík, Cs.: ~, Budapest, 1985
Wilt, P.: Interjú ~ral (kat., bev. tan., Csók Képtár, Székesfehérvár, 1986)
Kovács, P.: A tegnap szobrai. Fejezetek a magyar szobrászat közelmúltjából, Szombathely, 1992
Prohászka, L.: Krisztus, szentek, angyalok. ~ 1945 előtti egyházművészeti alkotásai, Magyar Műv. Fórum, 1999/3.

(Translation: Vladimir Végh)