Vilmos Zsolnay (April 19, 1828 in

Pécs Pécs ( , ; ; Slovak language, Slovak: ''Päťkostolie''; also known by #Name, alternative names) is List of cities and towns of Hungary#Largest cities in Hungary, the fifth largest city in Hungary, on the slopes of the Mecsek mountains in the c ...

March 23, 1900 in Pécs) was a Hungarian

industrialist A business magnate, also known as an industrialist or tycoon, is a person who is a powerful entrepreneur and investor who controls, through personal enterprise ownership or a dominant shareholding position, a firm or industry whose goods or ser ...

and

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value in ways that generally entail beyond the minimal amount of risk (assumed by a traditional business), and potentially involving values besides simply economic ones. An entreprene ...

. As the director of the Zsolnay porcelain manufacture he introduced new materials and inventions into the manufacture of

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other raw materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. The place where such wares are made by a ''potter'' is al ...

and

ceramic A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant, and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcela ...

s and led the company to world-wide recognition.

Early life and education

Zsolnay was born on April 19, 1828, in

and studied at

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

's Polytechnical High School.

Business career

In 1863, he returned and joined his father company, The Zsolnay factory, to eventually take over its management. He was able to attract talented artists to work for him, and under his directorship the small family-owned company grew into a world-renowned enterprise. The introduction of new techniques and materials was important in this development. With , Zsolnay discovered the eosin process that gives articles an iridescent glaze in multiple colors. Pyrogranite is a ceramic building material that he introduced and that became popular with the architects of the Hungarian

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau ( ; ; ), Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and ...

movement. He displayed his products at several

World exposition A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition, is a large global exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specific site for a perio ...

s, and was honored with the French

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

and the Order of Franz Joseph in recognition of his artistic work.As a designer, he was major employer for visual artists like Ármin Klein, and his doughters Terez and Julia as well as Sándor Apáti Abt, and several others. Important architects of his time were delighted to use Zsolnay's ceramics, e.g.: * Imre Steindl * Ödön Lechner * Aladár Árkay * Flóris Korb * Kálmán Giergl * Béla Lajta * Samu Pecz * * Frigyes Schulek

Death and legacy

After he died on March 23, 1900, his son Miklós Zsolnay took over the management of the manufacture. In 1907 the city of

inaugurated a statue of Vilmos Zsolnay, the first known statue in Hungary in the honour of someone other than statesmen or clergy, highlighting his importance in the contemporary development of commerce and industry. The statue is one of main touristic landmarks of the city.

References

External links

Zsolnay homepage

Informationen about Zsolnay
1828 births 1900 deaths 19th-century Hungarian people Hungarian potters People from Pécs {{Hungary-hist-stub

Early life and education

Business career

Death and legacy

See also

References

External links