Ilona Lovas
1946, Budapest – 2021, Budapest
“Ilona Lovas’ art stood out from that of her contemporaries since the 1970s, primarily for its grandeur and dynamism. Her work always radiated the sense of infinite freedom of creative will, which was particularly uplifting during the years of political repression. In the metamorphosis of creation, the representation of the intangible and the untouchable reaction, the amplification of the transcendent signs of matter, and the aspiring elevation of the earthly towards the sky are all dominant in Ilona Lovas' works and in her creative perspective. Her characteristic objects and materials become symbols or symbolic in her works, always evoking presence, and giving meaning to the “here and now”. The materials themselves can be described as archaic: they are ever natural, such as earth, wood, wheat, paper pulp, glass (sheet and fiber), cleaned cowhide, yarn, damask, wire, linen, and batiste. In her works of art, eternal time is subtly infiltrated, hidden but revealed through signs that defy verbal translation, lifting heavy materials: as mere materials, they would all gravitate downwards, however, in Ilona Lovas' creations, they become the medium that creates the power of the space pointing upwards and the expansiveness of its time.
In the malleability of the material, and in the everyday, complex phenomenon of metamorphosis, she presents unity, the sense of moving towards a single point, and the invisible layered inside visible surfaces and materials. Lovas shapes highly tangible, palpable materials into objects and into still and moving images, that often provoke a startling sense of touch. Her works prompt reflection on the inescapability of the fundamental questions of human existence and on its attachment to unity and the One.” – Excerpt from Anna Bálványos’ book on the works of Ilona Lovas (Lovas Ilona. INDA Gallery, Budapest, 2022).
