On the 6th of November, Attila Kondor, artist, gave a guided tour to the staff of the Central Bank of Hungary as part of our Meet the Artist series.
Attila Kondor is a painter and an animation film director. He graduated from the Department of Graphic Design of the Hungarian University of Fine Arts in 2000, his professor was András Baranyay. Gábor Andrási described his art as „medium-conscious painting” and Gábor Rieder as „contemplative conceptualism”.
At the guided tour, Kondor emphasised that his time in Rome had played an important role in shaping his artistic practice. His early career was characterised by a search for traditional oil painting methods and classical themes. At the same time, the symbolic gateways, staircases, marble halls and libraries, highlighted by classical architecture, imbued his paintings with a deep sense of meaning – enhance the classical subjects with an added significance. The reference for his works Inner Library, Inner Library II and Inventio in the MNB’s art collection is the library of the Abbey of Zirc, a symbolic space which the artist describes as „a special place of knowledge and collective memory”. Kondor’s philosophical approach was greatly influenced by James Elkins’ book Pictures and Tears.
Mária Kondor-Szilágyi, the artist’s wife and art historian, was also present at the guided tour
