The lone rider of Košice’s modernism Július Jakoby is one of the phenomena of the Central European region thanks to his expressive artistic tastes. He was born 28 March 1903 in Košice where he spent most of his life. He dies 15 April 1985. Jakoby is an undeniable part of Košice’s modern painting scene.
His work presented in the virtual gallery is modest in its scale, but its theme represents typical existentialist social themes of the author.
The painting titled Family with Children is a part of the author’s late period. Jakoby portrays three figures and thanks to the composition and the actual title of the painting we can safely assume the portrait is supposed to illustrate a relationship – a family. Two larger figures (mother and father) with a smaller figure located in the middle (child). Lively coloristic and ironising approach to the painting method carries typical attributes of the artist. Expressive strokes and vividly rich colour scheme are an undeniable part of his work.
The main source of his themes are his life experiences from the urban multi-cultural environment of historical Košice. He uses his paintings as comments – what he sees he visualises in his own way. Jakoby is a painter-storyteller whose reoccurring theme is the life of the people from his neighbourhood. He critically depicts their highs, lows, problems, uncertainty, dreams.
Július Jakoby starts his studies at the Private Painting School of A.Podolínyi in Budapest in 1922 but he returns home the same year. He starts working as a clerk and attends night courses of painting taught by Eugen Krón at the East Slovak Museum in Košice. In 1924 he exhibits his work together with other students.
He returns back to Budapest where he studies at the Hungarian University of Fine Arts in Budapest at a studio led by I.Réti. He leaves the school after two years and returns back to Košice where he spent the rest of his life. During 1938-1944 he is a member of The Kazinczy Society of Košice. Between 1945-1948 he is a member of the Svojina association. In 1949 he becomes a member of the Slovak Union of Fine Artists. In 1970 he had an internship in Austria. His works can be found in public and private collections both in Slovakia and abroad.
Awards: In 1934 he was awarded by the city of Košice for his painting Lying Female Act. In 1970 his received the Award for Lifelong Contribution to the Development of Art in Slovakia.
— Ľudmila Kasaj Poláčková
Inventory No.: O 1059
Author: Július Jakoby
Title: Family with Children
Year of origin: 1979
Technique: painting
Material: oil, plywood
Dimensions: 26,5 × 30 cm
Mark: bottom right, text Jakoby