Colourful Houses in Tabán 1937

Editor: We're looking at János Kmetty's "Colourful Houses in Tabán," painted in 1937. It’s an oil painting and instantly evokes a whimsical, slightly melancholy mood for me. The colors are bold, but the scene feels very still. What leaps out at you when you see this work? Curator: The houses almost vibrate, don’t they? Kmetty, steeped in that early 20th-century urge to push beyond representation, seems to be asking: what *is* the essence of “house”? Is it merely shelter, or a collection of feelings conjured by light, color, and a bit of childhood memory? Think of it as visual poetry rather than architectural record. Editor: Visual poetry... I like that! It's like he’s not just painting houses but painting *the feeling* of houses. It definitely takes cues from the Fauvist movement with the bold, clashing colors. Curator: Exactly! The Expressionist twist comes from that almost childlike distortion. The sky broods with intense blues, which both threatens and frames the earthy yellows and greens below. You almost wonder, were these houses always this color, or did Kmetty reimagine them for us, drenched in a personal light? Does the painting reflect Tabán or Kmetty's emotional landscape, or a fusion of the two? Editor: So, the artist’s personal experience and emotion become as important as accurately depicting reality? It definitely shifts my perspective of the piece. Curator: It becomes everything. This is Kmetty not showing us Tabán but *feeling* Tabán and bravely inviting us to feel it with him. A splash of colour here, an intense shadow there... that’s not just paint, it’s an emotional resonance made visible. Editor: Wow, I hadn't thought about it that way. It really encourages a much deeper and personal experience. Curator: Absolutely, art like this whispers, urging you to look beyond the surface. What feelings does Tabán, real or imagined, ignite in *you*? That, my friend, is the painting’s enduring question.