Artists

Dávid Merényi

Press release

For those familiar with Dávid Merényi’s work to date, the mention of his name almost instantly evokes well-known Budapest motifs: cool, shadowy entrances of turn-of-the-century tenement buildings, translucent streaks of light in the stairwells, and everyday moments of melancholic patina. In Dávid’s oil and acrylic paintings, these urban settings are never merely architectural backdrops. Rather, they give visual form to the suggestive silence of passing time and human presence. Alongside the intimate atmosphere of Budapest and the cyclical seclusion of the tenement houses, something new shines through: the warmth of Italian squares, buildings, and genre scenes, as well as the unique dynamics of Mediterranean light and moments. Next to the familiar Hungarian interiors, the historical arches of Italian cities, the openness of the squares, and the pulsing rhythm of Italian genre paintings have now entered the canvas. The title of the exhibition: Tutto passa – everything passes, or as the wisdom inherent in the Italian mindset suggests: everything slips away, everything fades. Tutto passa is not simply a resigned sigh. In the language of painting, this expression is the deepest driving force behind capturing the moment. The light entering the gates of the apartment buildings, and the Italian snapshots – each and every one depicts a single, fleeting moment. What vanishes in an instant in reality, becomes lasting on the canvas. Curator: Júlia Bacsek