Budapest’s Virág Judit Gallery throws open its doors this May with a doubleheader: the 18th Contemporary Auction of post-war and contemporary works and a lead-up exhibition at its Hegyvidék space at 1–3 Jagelló Street (Jagelló út 1–3). The exhibition runs May 4–16, daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., ahead of the auction on Tuesday, May 19, at 6 p.m. at the Budapest Music Center. Organizers reserve the right to change the time and program.
Hantaï’s Monumental “Painting” Leads
The headline lot is a large 1955 oil by Simon Hantaï, titled simply “Festmény” (Painting). It opens at 50,000,000 HUF (about 138,000 USD), with an estimate of 95,000,000–120,000,000 HUF (about 262,000–331,000 USD). Access to Hantaï on the Hungarian market is rare—especially at this caliber and scale. Hantaï, who spent most of his career in France and rose to global fame as an abstract painter, set a watershed record in 2016 when one of his works sold for 1.4 billion HUF (about 3.85 million USD), the highest price ever paid for a work by a Hungarian or Hungarian-born artist.
Blue-Chip Hungarian Names Under the Hammer
Imre Bak’s 1995 work “Die Stadt” (The City) starts at 11,000,000 HUF (about 30,000 USD). From Ákos Birkás’s emblematic “Fej” (Head) series, the 1996 “Kopf” goes to the block as well. Szentendre master Pál Deim’s 1990 “Csend” (Silence) reemerges with a starting price of 8,500,000 HUF (about 23,500 USD), drawing strong interest.
Ilona Keserü’s Roman Year Highlight
Ilona Keserü—currently the most expensive living Hungarian artist after a 110,000,000 HUF (about 302,000 USD) sale—returns with “Anguillara,” painted in 1963 during her scholarship year in Rome, opening at 10,000,000 HUF (about 27,500 USD).
Where and When
– Exhibition: May 4–16, Virág Judit Gallery, 1123 Budapest, 12th District (Hegyvidék), 1–3 Jagelló Street (Jagelló út 1–3), daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
– Auction: Tuesday, May 19, 6 p.m., Budapest Music Center.
Also featured: works by János Fajó, Dóra Maurer, István Nádler, and István ef Zámbó.
