ArtWay - Ervin Bossanyi: A vision for unity and harmony

Remembering Ervin Bossányi was an event held at the Liszt Institute in June 2022 dedicated to Hungarian-born artist Ervin Bossányi, best known for his stained glass windows at Canterbury Cathedral.

Art historian Monica Bohm-Duchen, founding director of Insiders/Outsiders, led a panel discussion with family members, stained glass experts and others to explore the extraordinary life and unique cultural contribution of this still too little-recognised artist. I was on the panel with: Ilona Bossányi: granddaughter of Ervin Bossányi; Alfred Fisher MBE: stained glass artist, who worked with Bossányi; and Caroline Swash: stained glass artist and author of The 100 Best Stained Glass Sites in London.

The talk that I gave has been published by ArtWay as Ervin Bossanyi: A vision for unity and harmony. The talk is about 'the context in which Bossanyi’s work and vision needs to be placed in order to be understood and appreciated as a unique contribution to the spiritual and religious art created in this period and one having synergies with the work of his peers':

 

'In Europe and the United States this was a time of a modernist preoccupation with religion and spirituality to which Bossanyi and other émigré artists made an immense contribution, despite the challenges they faced through enforced migration and the loss of work. Bossanyi contributed a vision for unity and harmony embracing all peoples and all faiths whilst being based on the fundamental interactions of human life.'

I first got to know Ilona Bossanyi as a result of a Church Times article that attracted her interest, being based on a conference held at St John's Waterloo that raised awareness of the threat to works by Hans Feibusch and other émigré artists. That article can be found at - https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2021/11-june/features/features/debt-owed-to-jewish-refugee-art. See also my Artlyst articles on Refugee Artists: Learning from The Lives Of Others and Polish Art In Britain: Centenary Marked At London’s Ben Uri Gallery.

I then interviewed Ilona for Artlyst. That interview about her grandfather can be found at: Ilona Bossanyi: Tate’s Ervin Bossanyi Stained Glass Window Mothballed After 2011 Redevelopment.

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T. Bone Burnett - River Of Love.