Károly Kós
Encyclopedia
Károly Kós was a Hungarian architect, writer, illustrator, ethnologist and politician of Austria-Hungary
and Romania
.
, Austria-Hungary
(now Timişoara, Romania), he studied engineering
at the University of Budapest, and only afterwards turned towards architecture (graduating from the Budapest
Architecture School in 1907). Already during his studies and at the start of his career, he had a special interest for the historical and traditional folk architecture, and made study trips to Kalotaszeg
and the Székely Land
.
In 1909, his project for the Roman Catholic
church in Zebegény
, in 1909 the Óbuda
Reformed
parochial building, and in 1910 the Budapest Zoo complex (with Dezső Zrumeczky), were carried out. During the 1910s, he completed the Reformed Cock Church in Kolozsvár
(a city later known as Cluj or Cluj-Napoca) and the hospital in Sepsiszentgyörgy
(Sfântu Gheorghe). At the time, his style was influenced by the Vienna Secession
and Art Nouveau
.
In 1914, at the start of World War I
, Kós moved to Stana
(Sztána). He was drafted the following year, but soon discharged on request from the Ministry of Culture. Between 1917 and 1918, he was sent on a study trip to Istanbul
. In 1918, Kós was asked to be a professor of the College for Applied Arts of Budapest
, but he declined, wishing to return to Transylvania
.
He lived off commissions and started a political career, choosing, unlike many in the Hungarian community, to accept the Romanian Kingdom
's administration in the region as a given, while engaging in active opposition inside its legal framework (and authoring a manifesto calling on others to do the same). Alongside Lajos Albrecht and others, he was one of the founders of the Transylvanian People's Party in 1921 — the group later formed the Magyar Party
. Kós also edited its illustrated political journal Vasárnap.
In 1924, he and several of his friends founded a publishing house under the name Erdélyi Szépmíves Céh ("Transylvanian Guild
of Fine Arts"). From 1931, he was editor of the Erdélyi Helikon, and manager of the Miklós Barabás
Guild (an independent interest group of Hungarian artists in Romania).
In 1944 his house in Stana (part of Northern Transylvania
) was plundered, and he fled to Cluj, where he rejoined his family. He was director of the Transylvanian Hungarian Economic Association. As a politician, he was the president of the Hungarian People's Union
(Magyar Népi Szövetség, MNSz), and afterwards member of the Assembly of Deputies
(1946–48).
Kós taught at the College for Agriculture in Cluj until 1953, filling the post of the dean in 1945, and contributed to the journal Világosság between 1948-49. He died in Cluj.
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
and Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
.
Biography
Born in TemesvárTimisoara
Timișoara is the capital city of Timiș County, in western Romania. One of the largest Romanian cities, with an estimated population of 311,586 inhabitants , and considered the informal capital city of the historical region of Banat, Timișoara is the main social, economic and cultural center in the...
, Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
(now Timişoara, Romania), he studied engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
at the University of Budapest, and only afterwards turned towards architecture (graduating from the Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
Architecture School in 1907). Already during his studies and at the start of his career, he had a special interest for the historical and traditional folk architecture, and made study trips to Kalotaszeg
Kalotaszeg
Kalotaszeg is a region in Romania, belonging to the area of Transylvania which was formerly part of the Hungarian Kingdom. It is one of the few areas in Western Romania with a significant Hungarian population, and it is a stronghold of old Transylvanian Hungarian folk traditions.- Geography...
and the Székely Land
Székely Land
The Székely Land or Szekler Land refers to the territories inhabited mainly by the Székely, a Hungarian-speaking ethnic group from eastern Transylvania...
.
In 1909, his project for the Roman Catholic
Roman Catholicism in Hungary
The Roman Catholic Church in Hungary is part of the worldwide Roman Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope and curia in Rome....
church in Zebegény
Zebegény
Zebegény is a picturesque historic town in Pest county, Hungary.It is located 60 km north of Budapest in the Danube Bend, next to the Duna-Ipoly National Park. It is a favourite destination for tourists, who love the quiet and the fresh air...
, in 1909 the Óbuda
Óbuda
Óbuda was a historical city in Hungary. United with Buda and Pest in 1873 it now forms part of District III-Óbuda-Békásmegyer of Budapest. The name means Old Buda in Hungarian...
Reformed
Reformed Church in Hungary
The Reformed Church in Hungary is a key representative of Christianity in Hungary, being numerically the second-largest denomination in Hungary after the Roman Catholic Church, and the biggest denomination among ethnic Hungarians in Romania...
parochial building, and in 1910 the Budapest Zoo complex (with Dezső Zrumeczky), were carried out. During the 1910s, he completed the Reformed Cock Church in Kolozsvár
Cluj-Napoca
Cluj-Napoca , commonly known as Cluj, is the fourth most populous city in Romania and the seat of Cluj County in the northwestern part of the country. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest , Budapest and Belgrade...
(a city later known as Cluj or Cluj-Napoca) and the hospital in Sepsiszentgyörgy
Sfântu Gheorghe
Sfântu Gheorghe is the capital city of Covasna County, Romania. Located in the central part of the country and in the historical region of Transylvania, it lies on the Olt River in a valley between the Baraolt Mountains and Bodoc Mountains...
(Sfântu Gheorghe). At the time, his style was influenced by the Vienna Secession
Vienna Secession
The Vienna Secession was formed in 1897 by a group of Austrian artists who had resigned from the Association of Austrian Artists, housed in the Vienna Künstlerhaus. This movement included painters, sculptors, and architects...
and Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau is an international philosophy and style of art, architecture and applied art—especially the decorative arts—that were most popular during 1890–1910. The name "Art Nouveau" is French for "new art"...
.
In 1914, at the start of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Kós moved to Stana
Stâna
Aram Alnashéa , stage name Stana, is a Swedish DJ, music producer,label owner and a song writer, one of the few in the world to play the music style that often describes as Techstyle, Tech eller Stanastyle...
(Sztána). He was drafted the following year, but soon discharged on request from the Ministry of Culture. Between 1917 and 1918, he was sent on a study trip to Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
. In 1918, Kós was asked to be a professor of the College for Applied Arts of Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, but he declined, wishing to return to Transylvania
Transylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
.
He lived off commissions and started a political career, choosing, unlike many in the Hungarian community, to accept the Romanian Kingdom
Kingdom of Romania
The Kingdom of Romania was the Romanian state based on a form of parliamentary monarchy between 13 March 1881 and 30 December 1947, specified by the first three Constitutions of Romania...
's administration in the region as a given, while engaging in active opposition inside its legal framework (and authoring a manifesto calling on others to do the same). Alongside Lajos Albrecht and others, he was one of the founders of the Transylvanian People's Party in 1921 — the group later formed the Magyar Party
Magyar Party (Romania)
The Magyar Party was a political party in post-World War I Romania.The party had a heterogeneous structure, including bourgeois and landowners, peasants, workers, intellectuals and city-dwellers...
. Kós also edited its illustrated political journal Vasárnap.
In 1924, he and several of his friends founded a publishing house under the name Erdélyi Szépmíves Céh ("Transylvanian Guild
Guild
A guild is an association of craftsmen in a particular trade. The earliest types of guild were formed as confraternities of workers. They were organized in a manner something between a trade union, a cartel, and a secret society...
of Fine Arts"). From 1931, he was editor of the Erdélyi Helikon, and manager of the Miklós Barabás
Miklós Barabás
Miklós Barabás was a Hungarian painter. He his mostly known for his portrait paintings....
Guild (an independent interest group of Hungarian artists in Romania).
In 1944 his house in Stana (part of Northern Transylvania
Northern Transylvania
Northern Transylvania is a region of Transylvania, situated within the territory of Romania. The population is largely composed of both ethnic Romanians and Hungarians, and the region has been part of Romania since 1918 . During World War II, as a consequence of the territorial agreement known as...
) was plundered, and he fled to Cluj, where he rejoined his family. He was director of the Transylvanian Hungarian Economic Association. As a politician, he was the president of the Hungarian People's Union
Hungarian People's Union
The Hungarian People's Union was a left-wing political party active in Romania between 1934 and 1953, claiming to represent the Hungarian community...
(Magyar Népi Szövetség, MNSz), and afterwards member of the Assembly of Deputies
Chamber of Deputies of Romania
The Chamber of Deputies is the lower house in Romania's bicameral parliament. It has 315 seats, to which deputies are elected by direct popular vote on a proportional representation basis to serve four-year terms...
(1946–48).
Kós taught at the College for Agriculture in Cluj until 1953, filling the post of the dean in 1945, and contributed to the journal Világosság between 1948-49. He died in Cluj.
Buildings designed
- 1908-1910
- Reformed Parish Church, ObudaÓbudaÓbuda was a historical city in Hungary. United with Buda and Pest in 1873 it now forms part of District III-Óbuda-Békásmegyer of Budapest. The name means Old Buda in Hungarian...
- Roman Catholic Church, ZebegenyZebegényZebegény is a picturesque historic town in Pest county, Hungary.It is located 60 km north of Budapest in the Danube Bend, next to the Duna-Ipoly National Park. It is a favourite destination for tourists, who love the quiet and the fresh air...
; with Bela Janszky - Zoo buildings, BudapestBudapestBudapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
; with Dezső Zrumeczky - the Varjuvar, Kós' house in Sztana
- Reformed Parish Church, Obuda
- 1910-1913
- Városmajor Street, Budapest; with Dénes GyörgyiDénes GyörgyiDénes Györgyi was a Hungarian architect, a member of the Györgyi-Giergl artistic family.-Family background:Gyorgyi was born in Budapest into a well known clan of artists which stretched back generations...
- Wekerle housing estate, Budapest
- Székely National Museum, Sfântu GheorgheSfântu GheorgheSfântu Gheorghe is the capital city of Covasna County, Romania. Located in the central part of the country and in the historical region of Transylvania, it lies on the Olt River in a valley between the Baraolt Mountains and Bodoc Mountains...
(SepsiszentgyörgySfântu GheorgheSfântu Gheorghe is the capital city of Covasna County, Romania. Located in the central part of the country and in the historical region of Transylvania, it lies on the Olt River in a valley between the Baraolt Mountains and Bodoc Mountains...
) - Church with the Rooster, Cluj
- Városmajor Street, Budapest; with Dénes Györgyi
- 1930s and 1940s
- Kós' house in MiskolcMiskolcMiskolc is a city in northeastern Hungary, mainly with heavy industrial background. With a population close to 170,000 Miskolc is the fourth largest city of Hungary It is also the county capital of Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén and the regional centre of Northern Hungary.- Geography :Miskolc is located...
- Exhibition Hall, Cluj
- King Matthias HouseMatthias Corvinus House, Cluj-NapocaThe Matthias Corvinus House is one of the oldest buildings in Cluj-Napoca , Transylvania. It was built in the 15th century as a small guesthouse...
restoration, Cluj - Milk hall, Mera village, BaciuBaciu, ClujBaciu is a commune in Cluj County, located in the region of Transylvania, in the northwestern part of Romania. Baciu lies a short distance from the county seat of Cluj-Napoca...
- Kós' house in Miskolc
Novels
- Varjú nemzetség ("The Varjú Kin", 1925)
- A Gálok ("The Gál Family", 1930)
- Országépítő ("The Country Founder", 1934)