SZTE Autumn Cultural Festival wraps up with József Darázs exhibition

NewsCulture

Dec 1

The 28th Autumn Cultural Festival of the University of Szeged concluded with the opening of an exhibition by Szeged-based painter József Darázs. Held at the Rector’s Building, the exhibition was inaugurated on Thursday afternoon by Róbert Nátyi, art historian and dean of the SZTE Bartók Béla Faculty of Arts.

"The paintings in József Darázs's exhibitions often remind me of the aboriginal style, as I sense the influence of Australian Indigenous art in his works. It reflects traditions and an ancient, original state in the cultural history of humanity, which provides a solid foundation for the artist," Nátyi remarked.

"The works of József Darázs are examples of how, at the beginning of the 21st century, it is possible to say something new to the people of our age by reaching back to millennia-old traditions, using modern tools and forms – something that is not necessarily only about this world. It is about something more than just this world. József Darázs's paintings are poster-like in the sense that they are flat, with decorative large color patches, reminiscent of Japanese woodcuts from the 1860s and the expansive flat surfaces of the Art Nouveau poster art that followed. These paintings are shaped by the magic of drawing. In this sense, József Darázs's painting has a magical quality; his works function as meditation objects. He has understood what artworks must be like to become objects of meditation. They must be symbolic; they do not depict the world around us but hint at certain intuitions about it. His way of thinking is somewhat akin to icon painting," the art historian elaborated during the exhibition opening.

József Darázs's exhibition, titled Egyszer (Once), is open to visitors at the SZTE Rector’s Building until January 15, 2025, on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.