Károly Ferenczy

Jozsef Lukacs Szegedi, Budapest (probably acquired from the artist); thence by descent to the present owner

Budapest, Mücsarnok, Karoly Ferenczy Memorial Exhibition, 1922, no. 15

Istvan Genthon, Ferenczy Karoly, Budapest, 1963, no. 169
Istvan Genthon, Ferenczy Karoly, Budapest, 1979, no. 178
Judit Boros & Edit Plesznivy (ed.), The Retrospective Exhibition of Károly Ferenczy (1862 -1917), exh. cat., Hungarian National Gallery, Budapest, 2011, no. 190, pp. 224 & 333, illustrated; p. 358, catalogued

Original canvas. There is a pattern of paint shrinkage overall, with a handful of associated small spots of paint flaking, primarily in the lower left quadrant and in the centre just below the horizon. Ultraviolet light reveals no visible signs of retouching, the overall appearance is good and the work is clean on the surface.
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Painted in 1904 in Lussingrande on Lussin Island (Lošinj), Croatia.

Generally considered the father of modern Hungarian art, Ferenczy, together with Rippl-Ronai is the most important Hungarian Impressionist and Post-Impressionist painter. Born in Szentendre, Ferenczy founded the Nagybánya artists' colony in 1896 after having completed his studies in Munich and Paris, and became one of its leading figures. Whilst he was a fairly prolific painter most of Ferenczy’s important works are in museum collections in Hungary, and it is extremely rare to be able to offer a major work by the artist on the international art market.

In the eighteenth and nineteenth century Lussin, a small island in the Adriatic Sea in the Gulf of Quarnero, together with the adjacent islands of Veglia and Cherso formed an administrative district in the Austrian dominion of Istria.  Lussingrande, in the south east of the island, became a popular winter resort in the nineteenth century due to its mild climate, and it is likely that Ferenczy visited the island as a tourist.

Lussin island is formed predominantly of chalk limestone and dolomite rocks and Lussingrande sits on a rocky outcrop above the sea. The distinctive rocks of its coastline are masterfully depicted by Ferenczy in the lower left corner of Sea in sculptural swirls of rich impasto. However, most of this poetic composition is devoted to capturing the beautiful, intense blue of the Adriatic sea surrounding the island, and the clear blue sky. The horizontal lines of rich blue bands of sky and sea give the painting an almost abstract quality. Ferenczy painted only a few pure landscapes and only two sea views, including the present work, are known in his oeuvre.

Sea was purchased in 1922 by Jozsef Lukacs, a prominent Hungarian financier, collector and patron of the arts, who lived in Budapest at the turn of the century, and has remained with his descendants ever since. Lukacs and his family were friends and supporters of the Hungarian artists association The Group of Eight. Lukacs' son had written the passionate manifesto 'The Roads divided' in defence of the 1909 art exhibition of The Group of Eight, and his daughter Mici was a close friend of Deszö Czigány. Lukacs' collection included works by fellow Hungarians Robert Bereny, Jozsef Nemes Lamperth, Deszö Czigány, Jozsef Rippl-Ronai, and Karoly Kernstok. After Lukacs' death, his widow donated his seminal painting Lonely Rider by Kernstok to the National Gallery, Budapest.