Vilmos Novák Aba Painter graphic artist

Aba-Novák, Vilmos (until 1912 Vilmos Novák) (Budapest, 15 March 1894 - Budapest, 29 September 1941) Hungarian painter, graphic artist, one of the most original and controversial talents of modern Hungarian painting. Between 1912-14 he studied at the Budapest Academy of Fine Arts, then worked at the Szolnok Art School and in Nagybánya. From 1928-30 he was a fellow of the Hungarian Academy of Rome, and from 1939 he was a teacher at the Budapest Academy of Fine Arts. As a fresco painter, he completed several state and church commissions (frescoes of the Roman Catholic Church in Jászszentandrás, the Heroes' Gate in Szeged,[1] the St. Stephen's Mausoleum in Székesfehérvár[2][3]). His virtuoso style of late tempera paintings incorporated elements of Expressionism and the Italian Novecento style. His dynamic compositions, painted in bright colours, are monumentally inspired and characterised by his favourite subjects, the village fair and the circus. His technique was brilliant, evoking the life of the people of the lowlands, not without caricaturistic elements. His paintings are preserved in the Hungarian National Gallery and other public collections, as well as in numerous private collections.