GYÖRKÖS 100 – painting exhibition
Albert Györkös Mányi Biographic Chronology
(Source: Lajos KÁNTOR: Györkös Mányi Albert, Kriterion Publishing House, Bucharest, 1995.)
18 July 1922: He was born in Săvădisla, Cluj County. His father, György Györkös Mányi, was a farmer and florist gardener. His mother, Krisztina Györkös Bandi, was known in the village for her beautiful Kalotaszeg sewing and lace crocheting.
1934: His father died, and from then on his mother, with the help of his grandmother, was raising her three sons in difficult circumstances. He completed the seven primary school years in his home village, where he was greatly influenced by local folk traditions.
1939: He caught skeletal tuberculosis and his right arm was put in a cast. For this reason he was permanently absolved from military service. He got a job in a shop in Cluj. He completed his high school education privately.
1945–1948: He worked as a clerk in the shoe factory in Cluj. There he was involved in orchestral activities.
1948: He was a state scholarship student at the Music Faculty of the Hungarian Institute of Arts in Cluj.
1949: He fell ill again, suffered a relapse of his skeletal tuberculosis and was hospitalised for several months, for this reason he had to repeat the second year.
1954: He took his state exams at the Music Conservatory „Gheorghe Dima” in Cluj. In September, he was appointed clarinet teacher at the Music High School in Cluj.
1962: He married the painter Ilona Jakab. Beside his work as a music teacher, he started painting, but he also practiced many other artistic techniques and experimented with several genres. He devoted all his energy to the study of painting.
1971: He and his wife got a spacious studio. This gave a new impetus to his work; not even the winter cold could prevent him from standing daily in front of his easel in the unheated room. He received an official award for his work as a music teacher.
1980: He got acquainted with the painter Jenő Barcsay.
1982: He became a member of the Romanian Art Fund.
1984: He made a study trip to Hungary. In Szentendre he met Jenő Barcsay again. In Hollóháza he got acquainted with the painter Endre Szász. A solo exhibition was organized for him at the Jókai Club in Budapest; the opening speech was delivered by art historian Lajos Németh.
1985: In autumn he and his wife moved to a new studio at Republicii/Majális street 5 (today’s Györkös Mányi Albert Memorial House). 1988: He made a trip to Western Europe.
27 May 1993: In his studio apartment in Cluj, he ended his life with his own hands.
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In his will, Albert Györkös Mányi bequeathed his studio apartment, together with his fortune, to the Hungarian Cultural Society of Transylvania (EMKE), with the aim and condition that the association “permanently exhibit his paintings, establish a memorial house, set up the Albert Györkös Mányi Foundation, and ensure the professional management of the legacy and its integration into the intellectual circulation” (quotation from his will).
Albert Györkös Mányi had eighteen solo exhibitions and also participated in twenty-eight group exhibitions, both at home and abroad. His work has been recognised both within and beyond our borders.
Awards: - 1971: he received an official award for his work as a music teacher. - 1985: for his Kalevala paintings he received a commemorative medal from the Kalevala Society in Helsinki.
Selection of solo exhibitions: - 1963:Solo exhibition of painting, Art Exhibition of Cluj Region, Cluj. After that, he regularly participated in exhibitions organised by the Cluj branch of the Fine Arts Association. - 1972: Petőfi Sándor House of Culture, Bucharest. - 1973: Fine Arts Fund Small Gallery, Cluj - 1977: With Sándor Benczédi, Târgu Mures - 1984: Solo exhibition of painting, Jókai Club, Budapest. - 1985: Kalevala paintings, Filo Gallery, Cluj - 1985: Satu Mare - 1988: Joint exhibition with Ilona Jakab, Cologne.
Selection of group exhibitions: - 1968: group exhibition of Artists from Cluj, Titograd, Yugoslavia (first exhibition abroad) - 1969: Zalău. - 1970: County Art Exhibition, Cluj (painting, graphics). - 1970: debut exhibition of artists from Cluj, Bucharest. - 1975: National Art Exhibition, Bucharest (painting). - 1977: Ady Centenary – Korunk Gallery, Cluj. - 1981: Bartók Centenary – Korunk Gallery, Cluj. - 1982: National Festive Art Exhibition (painting), Bucharest. - 1982: Kodály–János Arany – Korunk Gallery. - 1983: Cristuru Secuiesc. - 1985: County Art Exhibition, Turda. Literature: - 1995: Lajos KÁNTOR: Györkös Mányi Albert, Kriterion Publishing House, Bucharest. (Monograph on his career and work.)