One of the most original painters of the famous epoch of the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries was Teodor Kosztka - Csontváry. This year marks the 170th anniversary of the birth of the world-famous painter, whose birthplace is Sabinov. At the age of ten, after the great fire in early September 1863, which destroyed his family home, he moved to Seredny in Ukraine.
From 1861 he studied in Prešov and later law in Budapest. It was during his treatment in Spišská Nová Ves, where he also worked as a pharmacist, that he caught a mystical vision of becoming a more famous painter than Raffaello Santi.
He was an avid traveller, collecting subjects for his drawings on his travels. He saw the mystical beauty of creation in nature. This was also reflected in his work. His paintings of Castellammare di Stabia were made in Italy, as well as Flowering Almond Trees in Taormina. A sense of the elements was also evident in his work. Motifs of sun, water, wind or others were therefore an important part of his work. One of his most famous paintings, which he painted in 1907, is entitled The Lonely Cedar. At the same time, this painter worked very interestingly with different colours, reflecting important works such as the paintings of the Roman Bridge in Mostar or the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem.
The work of Kosztku - Csontváry is rich and its evaluation requires a demanding assessment of the work of art historians. This exceptional painter secretly sought in his works answers to the philosophical questions of our existence. The extraordinary work of this native probably concludes with his most famous painting - Riding a Horse by the Sea.
He was honored with exhibitions in New York and in other galleries. He was a misunderstood genius of his time. In 1919 he died in Budapest, disillusioned and in the throes of schizophrenia, which made his life miserable. It took many years for the doors of the Five Churches Museum to open with his paintings, but you can also find some of them in the National Gallery in Budapest.
"It is in Sabinov that this native is honoured to this day. In 1993, a memorial plaque was unveiled at his birthplace in Sabinov on the occasion of the 140th anniversary of the birth of this important native of Sabinov. It took place on the Square of Freedom No. 43. The plaque is the work of Ján Nagy, and besides the representatives of the town, the art theorist Dr. Gábor Papp was also present at the unveiling," says Juraj Vrábel, an employee of the town of Sabinov.
"Teodor Kosztek - Csontváry is commemorated in Sabinov with an art competition. Every year there is a competitive exhibition of art works of pupils under the name of Csontváry's wandering shoes, which is under the direction of art teacher Mgr. Antónia Iľkivová. In it, pupils show their talent, but often improvise, inspired directly by the work of the native Csontváry," noted Juraj Vrábel.Yet in 2019, on the initiative of the Mayor of Sabinov, Ing. Michal Repasky, 13 copies were imported directly from the Five Churches. This was done on the occasion of the centenary of the great man's death.
"Many locals and visitors to the town do not know the story of the world-famous painter, who is a native of Sabinov. It is at the Municipal Office that they can see famous paintings or copies of them by the painter, such as the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, Castellmare di Stabia, the Lonely Cedar, Mary's Well in Nazareth, the Moroccan Teacher, the Roman Bridge in Mostar, the Temple of Jupiter in the Roman Temple in Athens, the Storm in Hortobaga, the Waterfalls in Egg, the Great Cold Valley, the Little Taormina and many others," said the mayor of Sabinov, Michal Repaský.
