Description:
Interesting painted poster artwork, probably by Csaba Rékassy, a talented Hungarian graphic artist and painter of the 20th century, who was mostly known for his copper engravings and illustrations.
This work proves his talent in the field of poster design, too. This poster artwork was created for an advertisement of one of the most famous porcelain manufactories of Hungary, called Herendi Porcelain.
The history of the porcelain manufactury dates back to the 19th century. The first ceramics factory was established in 1826, near the lake Balaton, in a tiny village, Herend. The little factory was taken over by Mór Fisher in 1839 and from then on only porcelain was produced. The success soon arrived in Hungary and internationally as well, the brand was already widely known in the second part of the century.
The factory could later always tide over hard times through history. For example, the trade decreased to minimum during the years of World War I, but the factory could continue operating afterwards, or in 1948 the factory was socialized, still it didn’t cease operating, moreover it significantly developed. The Hungarian economy slowly started to prosper and export trade played an important role in the process. During these years trading activities were governed by big state companies, and Artex was the company responsible for the export of artistic and decorative objects.
Between 1960 and 1969 Artex was in charge of the continuously growing export of Herendi. This small poster artwork was probably created these years. The English text in the poster artwork also proves the fact that it was created to address foreign public.
The nude of a classic ideal alludes to the beauty of the Herend porcelains. The white sculpture of a musculous man appears in front of an intense purple background in a harmonious composition. The typography is just as important as the picture itself, and in the upper right corner the coat of arms of the porcelain manufactory can be seen in light blue.
This small poster artwork is a valuable relic of Herendi Porcelain and of Hungarian history.
