An exhibition which illustrates the story of the acquisitions of the richest and oldest collection in the world devoted to self-portraits of artists

The temporary exhibition showcases twenty-three artworks from the Uffizi Gallery’s collection of self-portraits, most of them were bought at the end of the 19th and start of the 20th century, although there have been recent additions.

This particular exposition is dedicated to the memory of Miklós Boskovits, a well-known Hungarian art historian and professor at the University of Florence who passed away in 2011.

The exhibition is also an acknowledgement of the friendship between Italy and Hungary that is being celebrated in 2013.

The exhibition is the result of a collaboration between two Hungarian art historians; János Végh and Fehér Ildikó, and Giovanna Giusti curator of the exhibition and Director of the 19th century and contemporary art Department at the Uffizi.

On display are the self-portraits that artists produced for the Uffizi, especially between the 19th and 20th century, right up to those of contemporary artists such as László Lakner. On the occasion of this show, Lakner has donated a second self-portrait painted in 2010, following that of 1970 which he gave to the Gallery in 2000.

The first self-portrait that entered the Uffizi’s collection was that of Károly Markó senior, in 1872; the last, arriving in 2009, is that of János Urbán (1934-) who lives and works in Switzerland. The oldest portrait is that of János Kupeczky (1667-1740), who in the first era of Romanticism was considered the major Hungarian artist of the 18th century.

The majority of the Hungarian portraits were donated to the Uffizi Gallery by the artists themselves, and each painting has its own story on how it became part of the Uffizi’s collection.

Janos Kupeczky (Pezinok, Slovacchia 1667 - Norimberga, Germania 1740), Autoritratto di  Janos Kupeczky, 1705 ca., olio su tela. Firenze, Galleria degli Uffizi, Depositi Marianne Gàbor (Budapest 1917 – 2014), Autoritratto di Marianne  Gàbor, 1956, olio su faesite. Firenze, Galleria degli Uffizi, DepositiVictor Vasarely (Pécs, Ungheria 1906 - XVI arrondissement di Parigi, Parigi, Francia 1997),  Autoritratto di Victor Vasarely, tecnica mista su tela. Firenze, Galleria degli Uffizi, DepositiViktor Vasarely (Pécs, Ungheria 1906 - XVI arrondissement di Parigi, Parigi,  Francia 1997), Autoritratto di Viktor Vasarely, fotoligrafia. Firenze, Galleria  degli Uffizi, DepositiIstvàn Csòk (Sáregres, Ungheria 1865 - Budapest, Ungheria 1961),  Autoritratto di Istvàn Csòk, 1912. Firenze, Galleria degli Uffizi, Depositi
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The Hungarian Self-Portraits at the Uffizi

Aula di San Pier Scheraggio, Uffizi Gallery, Florence

10 October – 30 November 2013

Exhibition curated by Giovanna Giusti, a project by Fehér Ildikó

Exhibition catalogue published by Giunti Editore (available only in Italian)

Exhibition catalogue in Hungarian curated by the Hungarian University of Fine Arts

Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e del Turismo, Soprintendenza Speciale per il Patrimonio Storico, Artistico ed Etnoantropologico e per il Polo Museale della città di Firenze; Galleria degli Uffizi e Firenze Musei, Università di Belle Arti d’Ungheria, Ministero degli Affari Esteri d’Ungheria, Ambasciata di Ungheria di Roma