…n‡ll— ki‡ll’t‡sok / One-man Shows

kritikai szemelvŽnyekkel / with critical excerpts

 

1984 - 1994

 

1984. m‡j. 25.-jœnius 30. òjpesti MinigalŽria, Budapest

1985. szept.25.-okt. 10. Kreuzkirche, Dresden

 

1986. jan. 10.-febr. 2. Ernst Mœzeum, Budapest gyűjtemŽnyes ki‡ll’t‡s / retrospective exhibition

 

...nem sokat tšrődik azzal, hogy a kŽpei milyen megvil‡gosod‡sokat v‡ltanak ki a nŽzőben. L‡that—an j—l Žrzi mag‡t b‡lv‡nyai kšrŽben, akik az Žvek sor‡n egyre šsszetettebb szemŽlyisŽgre tettek szert... A  művŽsz legœjabb b‡lv‡nyai mozgalmasabbak, hars‡nyabbak elődeiknŽl. Mintha œj t’pusa volna szŸletőben a kifogyhatatlanul v‡ltozatos Žs izgat— b‡lv‡nygalŽri‡nak. 

 

...does not care much about what enlightment his paintings will

induce in the viewer. Obviously he feels very well in the company

of his idols who during the years have acquired ever more

complicated personalities... The latest idols of the artist are

more dynamic, more stentorious than their predecessors. It seems

a new type is being born of the inexhaustibly variagated and

thrilling idol-gallery.

 

                Vargha Bal‡zs. Uj TŸkšr, 1986. jan. 12.

                               

...Arcukat mŽred arcodhoz...

nŽzŽsŸkkel te nŽzel/ kšzšnyŸkkel

te v‡laszolsz -                     

te v‡laszolsz -

 

’rta R‡kos S‡ndor, akinek —ce‡niai műford’t‡sait a festő illusztr‡lta - Veress P‡l kŽpeihez. Ez a vallom‡sszerű, de mŽgis szemŽrmes szemŽlyisŽg teszi egysŽges vil‡gœv‡ a mœzeum termeiben sorakoz— kŽpeket, Žs mintegy m‡sodlagoss‡ azt, hogy a művek mennyi technikai štletet, œj’t‡st tartalmaznak... KŽpeinek rendszere szervesen alakult ki az egyŽnisŽg tŸkšrkŽpekŽnt, mint Rembrandt mind bšlcsebb šnportrŽinak sora..."

 

...You compare your face with theirs... you are looking by their regard / you are answering by their indifference  - this is how the poet S‡ndor R‡kos, whose Oceanian translations were illustrated by the painter - wrote on the paintings of P‡l Veress. This personality, confessional yet shy, brings about the homogenity of the world represented by the pictures lined up on the walls of the museum, and reduces somehow to secondary importance all the ingenious technical novelties the works contain... The order of his pictures grew organically as the mirror-image of the personality, similarly to the series of ever wiser self-portraits by Rembrandt...

 

                SzŽkely Andr‡s, NŽpszabads‡g, 1986.febr.4.           

                               

...Ahogyan kompoz’ci—iban Veress ‡thidalta a geometrikus Žs a l’rai tartalom ellentŽtŽt, ezeken a salakreliefeken kibŽk’tette az intenz’v szinek

Žs a sz’nredukci— ellentmond‡sait is. A reliefek tudniillik csak œgy magukban ŽlŽnk sz’nűek voln‡nak Žppen, de hat‡rozottan tomp’tja, reduk‡lja őket az Žrdes felŸlet fŽnyt nyelő optikai hat‡sa. Mondhatn‡m, valamennyi művŽnek fortŽlya a statika Žs az expresszivit‡s, az šrškŽrvŽnyűsŽg Žs a mozgalmass‡g furcsa Žs oly ritka egysŽge...

 

Frank J‡nos, katal—gus-elősz—

 

...Just as Veress succeeded in his compositions to bridge the gap between geomatric and lyrical content, on these slag-reliefs he reconciled the contrast of intensive colour and colour reduction. The colours of the reliefs in themselves would be lively but the light-absorbing effect of the rough surface dims and reduces them to a large degree.

The secret of virtually every one of his works consists of the curious and so very rare union of the static and the expressive, of the eternal and the dynamic.

 

J‡nos Frank, Introduction to the catalogue                                 

     

"... Veress sštŽt dr‡m‡t vizion‡l, amelyben alig van d’szlet, Žs amelyben - tšbben meg’rt‡k m‡r - a humor az egyetlen ŽlŽnk’tő elem. Ez a festő nem misztifik‡l. Tudat‡ban van annak: az ember legkomorabb pillanataiban is kŽpes elmosolyodni. Az elmœl‡s, amit az ő szemŽben ezek a b‡lv‡nyok megtestes’tenek, nem a tragikus vŽgzet beteljesŸlŽse, hanem –hihetetlen volta folyt‡n – tragikomikus jelenet, amelynek sor‡n az ‡larcos šrdšgšk elrabolj‡k az embert...

 

...Veress has the vision of a sinister drama, nearly without dŽcor and with one single element to animate it, as written by several critics already: humor. This painter does no mistification. He knows that man is capable to smile even in the darkest moments. Passing away personified in his eyes by these idols is not the fulfilment of any tragic fate but - just because of being unbelievable - a tragicomic scene, where man is kidnapped by                        

masked devils...

                               

              Vadas J—zsef, ƒlet Žs Irodalom, 1986. jan. 24.

                                

1986. szept. 25. - okt. 10. CeglŽd, Toldy Ferenc k—rh‡z

                        

1987. nov. 20. - dec. 12. Gul‡csy GalŽria, Budapest

 

...HonnŽt sz—l’tja elő a művŽsz ezeket az archetipikus alakzatokat? A gyškerek Žs fagšrcsšk kalandos form‡inak vil‡g‡b—l, a folkl—r tšbbjelentŽsű mezejŽről, t‡voli kultœr‡k mŽlytengerŽből, a fŽrfi Žs női princ’piumok ősi Žs megv‡lthatatlan dualizmus‡b—l, az Žlet forr‡svidŽkŽről. Veress P‡l művŽszete emlŽkezŽs.

Az emlŽkezŽs erejŽvel elősz—l’tott alakok nem lŽpnek be hŽtkšznapi vil‡gunk racion‡lis terŽbe, nem kšrŸlšttŸnk, hanem bennŸnk Žlik ŽletŸket. A művŽsz b’zv‡st lemondhat t‡vlatr—l, t‡jr—l, csendŽleti asztalr—l, mert alakzatainak tere az idő, az a ny‡ri Žjszaka, melyet egyik legszebb kŽpŽnek c’me nevez meg, s amely bensősŽgesen kicsiny mŽretei ellenŽre monument‡lis kontœrokkal Žp’ti fel minden emberi tšrtŽnŽsek kulissz‡it...

 

...Wherefrom does the artist call into being these archetypical figures? From the world of adventureously shaped roots and gnarled wood, from the ambiguous field of folklore, from the deep sea of far-away cultures, from the age-old and unredeemable dualism of the female and the male principle, from the sources of life. The art of P‡l Veress is remembrance. The figures evoked by the force of remembrance do not enter the rational space of our everyday world, they live their lives not around us but within us. The artist can safely renounce perspective, landscape, the table of still-life, because the space of his figures is time, that Summer Night evoked by the title of one of his best paintings, which, in spite of its intimately small scale, builds a monumental setting for all human events...

 

Luk‡csy S‡ndor, òj Ir‡s, 1988. m‡jus

 

1988. febr. 10. - m‡rc. 1. S‡gv‡ri MűvelődŽsi H‡z, PŽcs

grafikai ki‡ll’t‡s          graphic works

 

1988. jœl. 5. - jœl. 31. îbudai PincegalŽria, Budapest

 

...Val—di szŸksŽgben Žs szorongattat‡sban az Žletšsztšn elemi műkšdŽse kell ahhoz, hogy valaki, mikšzben menteni pr—b‡lja a menthetőt, az ellentmond‡sok ilyen szšvevŽnyŽbe keveredjŽk; hogy jellŽ kšnnyebbŸlt jellemalakja b‡lv‡nykŽnt megjelen’tve sœlyosan testes legyen; hogy a kšrvonal Žs a felŸlet kŽtsŽgbevonva gazdag’tsa egym‡st; hogy a kőszerűen rideg form‡nak f‡hoz illően eleven erezete t‡madjon; hogy t‡blakŽpe reliefkŽnt viselkedjŽk; hogy festői minősŽgŽben ny’ltan kimerŽszkedjŽk a tŽrbe...

 

...Nothing but the elementary action of vital instinct can explain how someone in real distress, being really et bay - while trying to rescue what is recoverable - should find himself in such a tangle of contradictions: that his human figure distilled to the lithness of a sign represented as an idol should receive heavy corporality; that contours and surface should mutually call in doubt and yet enrich each other; that the stonelike rigid form should develop a vivid network normally befitting wood; that his panel painting should behave like a relief; that in his capacity as a painter he should openly venture to penetrate into space...

 

Orb‡n Ott—, ƒlet Žs Irodalom, 1988. jœl. 8. 

 

...Expressz’v anyaghaszn‡lata kŸlšnšs kultikus erőt kšlcsšnšz a termŽszeti nŽpek mot’vumkincsŽből sokat mer’tő b‡lv‡ny-‡br‡zol‡sainak. ... ezeknek a folytat‡sai(vagy ihletői ?) a termŽszet puszt’totta-alak’totta fadarabokb—l šsze‡ll’tott plasztik‡k.  A tal‡lt t‡rgyakhoz - a kiv‡laszt‡s Žs a c’mad‡s esztŽtikai műveletŽn k’vŸl - j— esetben nem tesz hozz‡ semmit, m‡skor, mint a bombasztikus ’zű PromŽtheusz esetŽben, egy rŽgi kŽpkeretbe foglal‡ssal "rontja el" a művet; megint m‡skor a hozz‡ad‡steremtő gesztus, szik‡r Žs erőteljes; ilyen az osztott kŽpmezőbe foglalt, ereklyeszerű Maszk Žs l‡ng, mely ak‡r egy Pilinszky-hommage is lehetne.

 

...His expressive use of material gives a curious cultic force to his idol-images that draw heavily on the decorative motives of nature people... the continuation (or inspiration ?) of these are the plastic works assembled from pieces of wood destructed and formed by nature. In lucky cases he does not add anything to the found objects - except the aesthetic act of choosing and giving a title. In other cases, as with the somewhat turgid Prometheus, he "spoils" the work by putting it into an old frame. In further cases the addition is a creative gesture, dry and forceful, as with the Mask and Flame, put into a divided field and resembling a reliquiary, that could well be an Hommage to the poet Pilinszky.

 

Boros GŽza, òj TŸkšr, 1988. jœl. 24.

 

1989. m‡rc.1. - 30. V‡rkonyi N‡ndor Kšnyvt‡r, PŽcs

  grafikai művek          graphic works

 

1989. szept. 14. - okt. 1. Budapesti MűvelődŽsi Kšzpont

  grafikai művek          graphic works

 

1991. m‡j. 8. - m‡j. 22. Gul‡csy GalŽria, Budapest

 

...Veress alkot—i vil‡g‡n belŸl ez a ki‡ll’t‡s egyben megœjul‡s Žs kiteljesedŽs is. KiteljesedŽs, mert az ŽrzŽkeny, artisztikus Žs virtu—z technikai kivitelezŽs... olyan mag‡t—l Žrtetődően termŽszetes, ahogy a mad‡r Žnekel, ahogy a minden szŸksŽges technika Žs kifejező eszkšz birtok‡ban levő előad—művŽsz eggyŽv‡lik a hegedűjŽvel. Megœjul‡s..., mert megjelentek művŽszetŽben a mozg‡st, v‡ltoz‡st, disszonanci‡t, belső dr‡m‡t kifejező alkot‡sok. RŽgebben ez a vil‡g j—indulatœ b‡lv‡nyokkal nŽpesŸlt be. LŽnyei, ha b‡nt‡s Žrte őket, šnmagukba fordultak, becsuk—dtak. òj ki‡ll’t‡s‡n nemcsak a szenvedŽst mutatja fel, hanem a hol heroikus, hol groteszk viaskod‡st, a megtšretett Žs œjj‡szŸlető lŽlek erejŽt is.

 

... within the creative world of Veress this exhibiton signals both a renewal and a fulfilment. Fulfilment, because the sensitive, artistic and accomplished technical execution...is as self-evidently natural, as the bird sings or as the virtuoso, in possession of all necessary technics and means

of expression becomes virtually one with his instrument.

Renewal...because...in his art there appear works that express movement, change, dissonance, internal conflict. Formerly, this world was populated by benevolent idols. Hes creatures, if offended, turned inside, closed themselves. At this new exhibition the artist shows up not only the suffering but also the alternately heroic or grotesque struggle, the force of a broken soul being reborn.

 

KerŽkgy‡rt— Istv‡n, òj Magyarorsz‡g, 1991. m‡j. 22.

 

 

1993. jœn. 5. - jœn. 26. Budapesti TšrtŽneti Mœzeum

AkadŽmiai "szŽkfoglal— ki‡ll’t‡s"  Academic "inaugural show"

 

Veress b‡lv‡nyai - aligha tagadhatjuk - hozz‡tartoznak ŽrtelmisŽgi lŽtŸnk "kŽpzeletbeli mœzeum‡hoz"..., egy modern szellemisŽgű kultur‡lis neveltetŽs autentikus emlŽkkŽpei. VŽgŸl is nem szŸksŽges..."művŽszi alkot‡sokkŽnt" szemlŽlni őket (œgy is lehet persze), ha nem mint az ősrŽgit, a kemŽny kŽreggel, kiŽgett rŽteggel elfedett valaha-voltat a maival, a kšzvetlen elevensŽggel štvšző emberi lŽt egyes ŽlmŽnykšreit, ‡llapotait kšzvet’tő, ŽrzŽkeltető, jelkŽpező - nem lŽlektelen - dolgokat, amelyek l‡tsz—lagos idegenszerűsŽgŸk ellenŽre ez‡ltal a kŸlšnleges sugalmaz— erő ‡ltal v‡lnak a szemlŽlet otthonos t‡rgyaiv‡...

 

 

...the "idols" of Veress - we can hardly deny it - are part and parcel of an "imaginary museum" belonging to our lives as members of the intelligentsia... they are authentic recollections of a cultural education in a modern spirit. After all, it is not necessary to view them as "creations of art" (although that is, of course, also possible)... but as - not soulless - objects that convey, suggest and symbolize certain experiences and states of human existence in which the primitive, the immemorial covered by a hard crust, by a burnt-our layer is alloyed with the immediacy of todays life. In spite of their apparent strangeness and through this unique suggestive force these things turn into familiar objects of our vision...

 

Mezei Ott—, òj MűvŽszet, 1993. nov.

 

Csoportos ki‡ll’t‡sok

 

101 t‡rgy. îbudai GalŽria, Budapest 1985

 

XIV.Orsz‡gos Grafikai Bienn‡lŽ, Miskolc 1987

 

Tavaszi T‡rlat, Műcsarnok Budapest 1988

 

XXVI.Szegedi Ny‡ri T‡rlat, M—ra Ferenc Mœzeum KŽpt‡ra, Szeged 1988

 

PŽcsi Grafikai Műhely ki‡ll’t‡sa, PŽcsi KisgalŽria, PŽcs 1989 dec.- 1990 jan.

 

L‡that— Hangok - a Soros-Alap’tv‡ny kedvezmŽnyezetteinek kamaraki‡ll’t‡sa, Kod‡ly-iskola, KecskemŽt 1989

 

XV.Orsz‡gos Grafikai Bienn‡lŽ Miskolc 1991. nov.-1992. jan.

 

ŐsisŽg Žs ModernsŽg, MŽdium GalŽria, Szombathely 1992. m‡rc. - ‡pr.

 

Az idegen szŽp. KŽpzőművŽszeti Főiskola, Budapest 1992

 

Hung‡ria 24 (az Eur—pa 24 magyar tagozata) ki‡ll’t‡sa,

Debrecen 1993. m‡rc. - ‡pr.

 

Participations

 

101 Objects, Gallery of îbuda

14. National Biennale of Graphic Art, Miskolc

Spring Exhibition, Palace of Art, Budapest

26th Szeged Summer Exhibition, Gallery of the M—ra Ferenc Museum, Szeged

Show of the PŽcs Graphic Workshop, Small Gallery of PŽcs

Visible Sounds - intimate show by the beneficiaries of the Soros-Foundation, Kod‡ly School, KecskemŽt

15. National Biennale of Graphic Art, Miskolc

Archaism and Modernity, Gallery Medium, Szombathely

The Alien is beautiful, Academy of Plastic Arts, Budapest

Exhibition of Hungaria 24  (Hungarian section of Europe 24),

Debrecen