Mattis Teutsch and the European avant-garde
Júlia Szabó

Notes

** MATTIS TEUTSCH, János, Empor [’Up’].

1 First exhibition of paintings organized by the periodical MA [’Today’]. János Mattis Teutsch collection. Opened on the 14th of October, 1917 at 15 Visegrádi utca in Budapest. Lajos KASSÁK’s preface to the catalogue.

2 MURÁDIN, Jenő,Brassó Párizsig ér. Mattis Teutsch János pályakezdéséhez. [Brassó reaches as far as Paris. On the debut of János Mattis-Teutsch.’] Magyar Művészeti Fórum, April 1999. Vol. II. No. 2. 2-6.

3 WEISS, Peg, JELAVICH, Peter et al., Kandinsky in Munich 1896-1914. The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York. 1982. In it see JELAVICH, Peter, Munich as Cultural Center: Politics and Arts. Pictures No. 53, 54, 55, 56.

4 RIEMERSCHMIED, Richard, Vom Jugendstil zum Werkbund. Werke und Dokumente. Ausstellungskatalog München, Stadtsmuseum, Nürnberg, Germanisches Nationalmuseum, 1982; Seelen Reich. Die Entwicklung des deutschen Symbolismus 1870-1920. Hrsg. Ingrid EHRHARDT und Simon REYNOLDS. München-New York, 2000.

5 WEISS, op. cit. 28. Der Blaue Reiter und das Neue Bild. Von der Neuen Künstlervereinigung München zum Blauen Reiter. Städtische Galerie in Lenbachhaus. München, 2 Juli – 30 Oktober 1999.

6 There is a lot of literature on the intellectual connections between Kandinsky and Rudolf Steiner. It is first mentioned by Sixteen RINGBOOM, Art in the Epoch of the Great Spiritual… Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institute, 29 (1960) 386. Of the Rudolf Steiner literature and his own writings, the following are relevant here: STEINER, R., Colour. Three lectures given in Dornach. 6-8 May, 1921. London-New York, 1935. HEMLEBEN, Johannes, Rudolf Steiner und die Anthroposophie. Wege zu einem neuen Menschenbild. Dumont. Köln, 1978. On Steiner’s Hungarian connections see Oliver A. I. BOTAR, János Mattis Teutsch and the Esoteric. An Interpretation of his ”Seelenblumen” Paintings. Toronto, 1986. Manuscript.

7 The latest catalogue and exhibition on the topic: Der Blaue Reiter. Herausgegeben von Christine HOPFENGART. Kunsthalle. Bremen. 25 März bis 12 Juni 2000. With essays by the editor and Andreas HÜNEKE, Marion ACKERMANN, Katja FÖRSTER, Ortrud WESTHEIDER, Monika WUCHER and others. Dumont. 2000.

8 Some references on the topic: FREEMAN, Judy, The Fauve Landscape. Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Abbeville Press. New York, 1990-1991.

9 GESKÓ, Judit, Les expositions internationales en Hongrie (1900-1917). Der Zugang zum Kunstwerk. Akten des XXV. Internationales Kongress für Kunstgeschichte. Wien, 1983. 122.

10 Kurt GLASER, Edvard Munch. Berlin, 1917. Bruno Cassirer, 2nd edition. 1922. Nic. STANG, Edvard Munch. Dresden, 1972. Other references: Munch und Deutschland. Ausstellungskatalog. Kunsthalle der Hypso-Kulturstiftung. München-Hamburger Kunsthalle. Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin-Stuttgart. 1994.

11 On August Strindberg see Göran SÖDERSTRÖM, Der andere Strindberg. Materialien zu Malerei, Photographie und Theaterpraxis. Insel, 1981.

12 Ingrid Mössinger, Beate Ritter, Kertin Dreschsel et al., Edvard Munch in Chemnitz. Wien, 14 Nov. 1999-20 Febr. 2000. STANG, op. cit. 231.

13 Knut HAMSUN, Vom unbewußten Seelenleben. Berlin, 1890.

14 STANG, op. cit. 54.

15 STANG, op. cit. Pictures 46, 61, 11.

16 See the literary titles probably supplied by the artist himself in the catalogue of one of his Berlin exhibitions: Herbstausstellung 1913. Kurfürstendamm 208/209. Berlin N128-139 Edvard Munch. Entwürfe für Wandgemälde in der Aule einer Universität (128), Die Sonne (129), Auf dem Felde (130). Im Walde (131), Die Geschichte (132), Die Liebe (133), Das Werden (134), Alma mater (135), Die Quelle (136), Der Baum (137), Badende Frauen (138), Badende Männer (139).

17 STANG op. cit. 80.

18 SZABÓ, Júlia, Blaue Seele. Seelenblumen. Acta Historiae Artium Tom. 39 (1997) 165-196. In Hungarian: Kék lélek, lélekvirág. [Blue soul, Soulflowers]. In: A mítikus és a történeti táj. (’Mythic and historical landscape’). Bp. 2000. 213-251.

19 František Kupka (1871–1957) ou l’invention d’une abstraction. 22 novembre – 25 fevrier 1990. Musée d’art moderne de la ville de Paris, with essays by Krisztina PASSUTH, Miroslav LAMAC and others.

20 KASSÁK, Lajos, Egy anarchista temetése. (’The Funeral of Galli the Anarchist’) A Tett (’Action’), 1915. No. 2. – SZABÓ, J., Some Influences of Italian Futurism on Hungarian Painters. Acta Historiae Artium, Tom. 24 (1978) Fasc. 1-2. 425-435. – Ungheria (J. SZABÓ) Enciclopedia Futurismo, Firenze, to be published.

21 DÉRY, Béla (ed.), A futuristák és expresszionisták katalógusa. (’The Catalogue of Futurists and Expressionists’). Nemzeti Szalon. Bp. 1913. January-February; Catalogue to the International Postimpressionist Exhibition at the Artists’ House. Bp. June-July, 1913. KERNSTOK, Károly, VASZARY, János (prefaces).

22 Archives of the Research Institute of Art History of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. Registration no.: MKCS-C-I-82.

23 KASSÁK, Lajos, Egy ember élete. (’The life of a man’). I. Bp. 1927. 396.skk. Kassák’s and Uitz’s visit to the Artists’ House. I am indebted to Béla Uitz for privately given information in the 1960s. SZÉLPÁL, Árpád, Forró hamu. (’Hot Ash’). Bp.1980.

24 The most revealing document here is a German preface written by János Mattis Teutsch himself to the catalogue of one of his Brassó exhibitions. One of the three paragraphs of the very condensed theoretical text is concerned with techniques for forming plasticity, for carving sculpture, and for exploring the relationships of space and form. See Doc.p.460

25 The Expressionists taking part in the ‘Futurist’ exhibition included Adler Egon (No. 24-25.), Ludwig Meidner (90-92.), Moritz Melzer (93-94.), Wilhelm Morgner (95-97), Richter Berlin (106-108), Bohumil Kubista (83-89), W. Kandinsky,and Alexei Jawlensky (26-70). The Expressionists taking part in the ’Postimpressionist’ exhibition included H. Campendonk (30-36), Erich Heckel (83), Alexei von Jawlensky (95-100), W. Kandinsky (102-111), Franz Marc (119-125), Moritz Melzer (136-138), Wilhelm Morgner (139-140), Gabriele Münter (141-147), Max Pechstein (152), Richter-Berlin (192-196), Karl Schmidt-Rottluf (197-200), and Marianne von Werefkin (210-213). The Preface was written by János Vaszary and Károly Kernstok.

26 BANNER, Zoltán, Mattis Teutsch. Bukarest, 1970. PASSUTH, Krisztina, Oeuvres des János Mattis Teutsch au Musée des Beaux Arts. 46/47. 1977. Elisabeth MOCANU-AXMANN, Mattis Teutsch pictor si teoretician expressionists. Arta Bukarest, 1970/7. VIDA, Gheorghe, Hans Mattis Teutsch and the European Dialogue of Form. Romanian Review, 38/12 (1984). 96-101

27 Schönberg, Kandinsky, Blauer Reiter und die russische Avantgard 9 März – 28 Mai, 2000. Konzept: Christian MEYER und Eugenie PETROVA. Redaktion und Lektorat Therese MUXENEDER und Iris PFEIFFER. Wien, Arnold Schönberg Center. Wien. 2000.

28 HEVESY, I., Mattis Teutsch. MA (’Today’) 20 November, 1918. Vol. III. No. 11. 129.

29 KANDINSKY, W., Über das Geistige in der Kunst. München, 1912. New edition: with Klaus Lankheit’s notes. München, 1979.

30 See János Mattis Teutsch’s letter to Iván Hevesy. Manuscript archive of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. in. Ms 4512/130

31 HEVESY, Iván, Túl az impresszionizmuson… Az új müvészeti törekvések Magyarországon. (’Beyond Impressionism… New Artistic Trends in Hungary). MA (’Today’). 20 March, 1919. Vol. IV. No. 3. 31-40. HEVESY, Iván, Futurista, expresszionista és kubista festészet. [’Futurist, Expressionist and Cubist Painting.’] Budapest, 1919. HEVESY, Iván, A futurizmus, expresszionizmus és kubizmus művészete. [’The Art of Futurism, Expressionism and Cubism’] Gyoma, 1922.

32 Stefan (correctly: Iván) HEVESY, Mattis Teutsch. (Vorbesprechung) Das Ziel, [Kronstadt] 1 July, 1919. The Hungarian forerunner of the German article was published in No. 11. Vol. III. 20 November, 1918 of MA and dealt with János Mattis Teutsch’s second exhibition in 1918. In the end, Hevesy did not travel to Mattis Teutsch’s most significant exhibition in Brassó. Probably, the political conditions in 1919 prevented him from going.

33 Mózes Kahána was his compatriot. Andor Simon wrote poems about his paintings, Andor SIMON, Vonagló tájak. [’Convulsive Landscapes’]. (MA No. 11. Vol. III. 20 November, 1918.) He later made graphic illustrations for Andor Simon’s volume of poems. He also corresponded with Bortnyik. Our painter’s clear colour-sense did not impel him to search for down-to-earth effects. János Mattis Teutsch’s landscapes writhe, whirl and surge like the images in Andor Simon’s poems dedicated to him.

34 See Éva BAJKAY, Uitz Béla. Bp., 1987. Zsuzsa MOLNÁR, Nemes Lampérth. Bp. 1967. More recent literature: Avant-garde Hongroise. Hongaarse avant-garde 1915-1925. 20. 10. 1999-16. 01. 2000. With bibliography. Avenue Marnix 24. Bruxelles. L’avantgarde hongroise et ses relations avec la Belgique et les Pays-Bas. Par Éva BAJKAY. Sándor Bortnyik 71, Vilmos Huszár 95, Lajos Kassák 105, János Mattis Teutsch 129, György Szücs, László Moholy-Nagy 155, József Nemes-Lampérth 175, Lajos Tihanyi 191, Béla Uitz 207.

35 Vol. 1918. of Der Sturm. Property of Missionart Gallery. See p.87 Fig. 11

36 Schönberg, Kandinsky, Blauer Reiter, 2000, Wien, Arnold Schönberg Center 224-225. Picture 110.

37 Kazimir MALEVICH, Gegenstandlose Welt. Bauhausbücher 1927. Hungarian edition: A tárgynélküli világ. [‘The Objectless World’] With a postscript by Éva KÖRNER, Bp., 1986. New edition: Florian Kupferberg. Mainz, 1980. 65, 66, 67, 92, 98.

38 Schönberg, Kandinsky op. cit. 240-243., Picture 120.

39 Schönberg, Kandinsky op. cit. 250-251. Pictures 126, 127. See also SHADOVA, Larissa, Suche und Experiment. Dresden, 1978. 120-321.

40 From the rich literature on Piet Mondrian (1872-1944): BLOK, C., Mondrian in de collectie van hat Haags Gemeente Museum.Den Haag. 1966. The rich Mondrian collection of the Hague Museum has the biggest and most complete set of the paintings, landscapes and figurative compositions in an expressive, Fauvist, symbolistic style which can be regarded as parallels to János Mattis Teutsch’s works.

41 Catalogue to the International Postimpressionist Exhibition at the Artists’ House. Bp. 1913. 13. See also notes 23-25

42 GOLL, J., Archipenko. Wien, 1921. T. DÄUBLER und I. GOLL, Archipenko Album, Potsdam, 1921. R. SCHACHT, Alexander Archipenko. Sturm Bilderbücher. Bd. 2. Berlin, 1923. H. HILDEBRANDT, Alexander Archipenko. Berlin, 1923. From the rich literature in later years: D. H. Karschan, Content and Continuity 1908-1963. Chicago, 1968.

43 MA [’Today’] Issue 15 April, 1921. HEVESY, Iván, Archipenko. Nyugat [’West’] 1921/II/1127-1128

44 Archives of MTA MKI, MKCS-I-82/38/8

45 Catalogue 1913. op. cit. 17.

46 Catalogue 1913. op. cit. 15.

47 Catalogue 1913. op. cit. 17.

48 W. ROETZLER et al., Itten Werke und Schriften. Zürich, 1972.- J. ITTEN, Kunst der Farbe. Subjektives Erleben und objektives Erkennen als Wege zur Kunst. Ravensburg, 1975. Johannes ITTEN, A színek müvészete. [’The Art of Colours’]. Translated by Gábor Karátson. Budapest, 1978. Corvina.

49 János Mattis Teutsch’s letter to Sándor Bortnyik. 1922. See p.465 Fig.28.

50 PAP, Gyula, Moholy–Nagy László kiállítása ürügyén. [’On the Pretext of László Moholy-Nagy’s Exhibition.’]. Archives of the Research Institute of Art History, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, MKCS-C-I-29-67/1-8. Ars Hungarica 1977/1. 147-150

51 GÜZE, E. G., Wilhelm Morgner. Bildhefte des Westfälisches Landesmuseum für Kunst- und Kulturgeschichte Nr. 20: Münster 1983.

52 MAJOROS, Valéria, Mattis Teutsch, Bp. 1998. 16-17.

53 See pp.474-475 in the catalogue

54 The German catalogue of the Brassó exhibition held at the beginning of the 1920s, with a Preface by János Mattis Teutsch. See. Doc. SZABÓ, Júlia, A mítikus és a történeti táj. [’The Mythic and Historical Landscape.’] (Appendix.) Bp. 2000. 311. (Translated by Ernő Marosi, dated 1919.]

55 The Viennese exhibitions are mentioned in the correspondence between János Mattis Teutsch and Iván Hevesy (Archive of manuscripts, Library of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Ms 4512/130) and Lujza Havas’s collection of data concerning avant-garde documents in Vienna, Archives of the Research Institute of Art History of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, MDK-C-I-142. According to these data, János Mattis Teutsch had exhibitions in Würthle Gallery in 1920 and 1924. in Vienna An article was published about the latter in the newspaper Der Abend. About the role of Vienna see: Wille zu Form. Ungegenständliche Kunst in Österreich, Tchechoslowakia, Polen und Ungarn. Hrsg. Jürgen SCHILLING. Wien, 1993.

56 See Éva Bajkay’s writing in the catalogue.

57 See the advertisement in the September 1918 issue of Der Sturm on art books available in Kunsthandlung Der Sturm 138/a Potsdamerstrasse. The artists involved included: Chagall, Archipenko, Klee, Benesch, Boccioni, Carra, Max Ernst, Feininger, Emil Filla, Albert Gleizes, Johannes Itten, Alexei Yawlensky, Paul Klee, Oskar Kokoschka, Fernand Leger, Franz Marc, Gabriele Münter, Picabia, Metzinger, Severini, Marianne von Werefkin.

58 On Wilhelm Wauer see NÉRET, Gilles, Die Kunst der Zwanziger Jahre. Freiburg, 1986.

59 References: NERDINGER, W., Rudolf Belling und die Kunstströmungen in Berlin 1918-1923. Berlin, 1981. Skulptur der Expressionismus. Kunsthalle. Köln, München, 1984.

60 Künstlerischer Austausch. Berlin Treffpunkt der Avantgard – vor und nach dem Ersten Weltkrieg. Lectures by Rose–Carol Washton Long, Robin Lenman, Éva Bajkay, Otto Karl Werckmeister and Hanne Bergins. Akten des XXVIII. Internationalen Kongresses für Kunstgeschichte. Berlin, 15-20 Juli, 1992. Band III. 521-575.

61 János Mattis Teutsch’ letter to Zoltán Bálint MTA MKI Archive MKCS-C-I-174.

62 Atys. Ed. Corrado Govoni, L. Nutting et al. Rome, Paris. November 1920. MAJOROS, V., A költő Mattis Teutsch. Ars Hungarica, 22/1 (1994) 154-159.

63 Hans Mattis-Teutsch, Galerie Visconti, Paris, Rue de la Seine 75. 1925.

64 See MAJOROS 1998. op. cit. 32., Pictures 1-2.

65 Editions of poems: Two poems translated by Nándor Kóla were published in a Hungarian periodical in Romania in 1971. Two other poems (Fel, Anya [’Up, Mother’]) have also been published both in their original German form and in Hungarian translation SZABÓ,Júlia, Mattis Teutsch János [’János Mattis Teutsch’]. 1983. Corvina. The poems translated by Nándor Kóla were re-translated by Dezső Tandori and published in MAJOROS 1994. All the four poems were published in MAJOROS 1998. op. cit. 165-170.

66 August Stramm, Das Werk. Hrsg. René Radrizzani. Limes, Wiesbaden 1978. References: Szabó, J., Blaue Seele… op. cit. AHA 39 (1997) 165-196. – A mítikus [’The mythic] op. cit. 213-251.

67 Wilhelm WORRINGER, Abstraktion und Einfühlung. München, 1908. KANDINSKY, W., “Über die Formfrage”. Der Blaue Reiter Almanach, München, 1912. – Über das Geistige in der Kunst. München 1912. Neuauflage: Hrsg. von Klaus Lankheit, München, 1979. Doc.

68 See Documents p 460

69 Mattis Teutsch’s letter to Iván Hevesy. MTAK Manuscript archives, Ms 4512/130. Doc.pp 462-463

70 August Stramm, Das Werk. Wiesbaden 1979. Szabó, J., A mítikus… [’The Mythic…’] op. cit. 222.

71 János Mattis Teutsch’s letter to Iván Hevesy. Manuscript archives. Library of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Ms 4512/125.

72 Hans Mattis Teutsch, Roemeense avant garde Anca Pop. Museum voor Schone Kunsten. Gent. Cahier 1. 1999. The material of the exhibition organized in Gent was displayed in the Hungarian National Gallery in Budapest in 1999. Unfortunately, no Hungarian catalogue was published.

73 BRASSAI, Előhívás. Levelek (1920-1940). [’Development. Letters (1920-1940)’] Bucharest, 1980. 19, 23, 35, 37, 89, 95.

74 Avantgard Osteuropa. Berlin West, 1956. Ed. Hans RICHTER. Nell Walden und Lothar SCHREIYER: Der Sturm. Ein Gedenkbuch an Herwarth Walden und die Künstler des Stuemkreises. Waldemar Klein. Baden- Baden, (1954)

75 BRASSAI, op. cit. 130, 158, 159, 163.

76 János Mattis Teutsch’s letter to Zoltán Bálint. Archives of MTA MKI, MKCS-C-I-174.

77 MATTIS TEUTSCH, Kunstideologie Stabilität und Aktivität im Kunstwerk. Postdam, 1931, New edition. Deutsche Neuauflage mit einer Einleitung von Mihai NADIN und mit einem Nachwort von Elisabeth AXMANN. Kriterion, Bucharest, 1977.

78 Manuscript in the family’s ownership. Published by MAJOROS 1998. op. cit. 44.

79 GOETHE, J. W., Sämtliche Werke. Jubileumsausgabe. Stuttgart, 1902. 25. Band, III. Teil. Schriften zur Kunst. Ruysdael als Dichter, (5-8.) Blumenmalerei, (154-160.) Wilhelm Tischbeins Idyllen, (188-208.) Maximen und Reflexionen über Kunst, (303-328.) SCHILLER, F., Aestetische Erziehung. Ausgewählt von Alexander Gleichen. Russwurm. Jena-Leipzig, 1905. SCHOPENHAUER, A, Die Welt als Wille und Vorstellung 1-2. 1982. Leipzig. SCHELLING, Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph, Münchener Vorlesungen zur Geschichte der neueren Philosophie und Darstellung des philosophischen Empirismus. Leipzig, Durr, 1902. – Werke I. Band. Friedrich NIETZSCHE, Schriften zur Naturphilosophie. Leipzig, 1907.


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