Oldal 458 [458]
NATIONAL SYLISTIC ASPIRATIONS
surpassing the pursuit of Lechner, such as into the interior and building
designs of Ede Wigand Toroczkai.*° International architectural journals
also published building designs by Toroczkai and his interior designs even
earnt international recognition at world exhibitions in the first decades of the
1900s.*' Similar to Toroczkai’s case, Transylvanian folk art had a great impact
on the art of Karoly Kós, who became the inspirational leader of a group of
architects who graduated from the Technical University in 1907 called the
Youngsters. Kés said:
we need to drill our souls into this land on which we are to build... That is the
reason I want to live the life of this beautiful nation, of Hungarians, to dream their
dreams, to think as they do, to be able to feel and remember as they do. Since this
feeling, thought and remembrance are available in their deeds... when they build
their churches, cottages and barns.”
When Karoly Kós designed his own house called Crow Castle in Sztäna in
1910, he set out from székely architecture characterized by “the closed and
integrated qualities of its ground plan, the generous and simple structure
neglecting almost any ornamentation emphasizing structural functionality
and the monumentality springing up from the relations between planes and
openings” in his understanding.** In his art, the influence of English and
Finnish architectural designs may be recognized besides folk architecture,
mostly the impact of Saarinen. The key importance of the Youngsters lies in
the sensitivity with which they composed their structures within a specific
environment. Nevertheless, the dilemma persisted whether the principles
and forms crystalized in designing cottages for the rural environment were
applicable in the city and for public buildings. The cosmopolitan citizens of
Budapest did not become part of the clientele of the Youngsters; however, the
school and small-flat programme under Mayor Istvan Barczy provided them
with some possibility of work.**
For more about the topic see: Katalin Keserü: Toroczkai Wigand Ede, Budapest, Holnap
Kiadó, 2007.
Since only a few of his designs were realized, his books published about the art of székely
villages, illustrated by his own drawings, as well as his drawings appearing in architectural
journals such as the Der Architekt and The Studio had a significant role in promoting a
national style of romanticism.
32 Quoted from: Akos Moravanszky: Építészet... 1998, 217-218.
33 Balázs Pál: Kós Károly, Budapest, Akadémiai Kiadó, 1971, 21.
Gyöngyi Erdei: A mintaadó polgármester. Bárczy István beruházási programja, Budapesti
Negyed, No.3, 1995, http://epa.oszk.hu/00000/00003/00008/erdei.html (2017.04.29.)