Tomislav Krizman

Tomislav Krizman
Born	(1882-07-21)21 July 1882 Orlovac (now part of Karlovac), Austria-Hungary (today's Croatia)
Died	Zagreb, SFR Yugoslavia (today's Croatia)
Nationality	Croatian
Known for	Oil painting, graphic art
Movement	secessionism, expressionism, cubism

Tomislav Krizman (1882–1955), was a Croatian painter, graphic artist, costume and set designer, teacher, author and organizer of cultural events. He painted in oils and tempera, although he is principally remembered for his remarkable graphic art.

He was of the founders of the Medulić Society, and the Zagreb Spring Salon of 1916. He exhibited in Zagreb, Belgrade, Ljubljana, Vienna, Paris and Rome.

Biography

Tomislav Krizman was born on 21 July 1882 in Orlovac (now part of Karlovac). He attended the Commerce Academy (Trgovačkoj akademiji), while also studying painting and drawing with Bela Čikoš Sesija, Robert Auer and Menci Clement Crnčić. From 1903 to 1907 he went to Vienna, where he attended the School of Crafts and Academy of Fine Arts studying with William Unger.

Krizman remained in Vienna for ten years, an important time in his artistic development, spending time with other artists of the avant-garde secession. He incorporated their ideas into his own art, and participated in the group exhibitions Hagenbundu, Jungbundu, Künstlerhausu and Secesiji.

From 1912, Krizman worked in Zagreb, first as a teacher at the Arts and Crafts School (Škola primijenjene umjetnosti i dizajna), then from 1922 in the graphics department of the Academy of Fine Arts.

He died on 24 October 1955 in Zagreb.

Legacy

Krizman is principally remembered for his remarkable graphic work. He loved to travel, and draw what he saw: views of Vienna, Hrvatsko zagorje, Bosnia, and Dalmatia. His unusual views of Bosnia, Hercegovina, Kosovo and Macedonia are very evocative and fresh. He created some memorable portraits, including Mary Delvarda, Portret djevojčice, Autoportret, Meštrović and brat Hinko.

His knowledge of graphic techniques was published in a book "On Graphical Arts" (O grafičkim vještinama), (1952).

He wrote books and magazine articles, worked as a costume and set designer for opera and drama.

The appearance of posters corresponds with the emergence of the secession or art nouveau movements that arrived in Zagreb in 1898. It was a popular image form of the new time, and Tomislav Krizman was one of the artists creating memorable poster art for various events of culture, sports, entertainment, and politics. One of his first posters was of the cabaret singer Marya Delvard, who had delighted audience in Vienna and Munich, before arriving in Zagreb in 1907. Krizman's image perfectly captured the essential femme-fatal type of art nouveau woman.

Works

• Portrait of Marya Delvard
• Portrait of Girls (Portret djevojčice)
• Self-portrait (Autoportret)
• Portrait of Ivan Meštrović
• Brother Hinko (brat Hinko)
• Ulica u Ohridu, 1930
• Travel drawings and etchings

Exhibitions

Solo shows

Recent solo exhibitions include

• 1995 Tomislav Krizman retrospektivna izložba - Art Pavilion, Zagreb

Group shows

During his lifetime, Krizman exhibited with the Medulić Society, and the Spring Salon. He exhibited in Zagreb, Belgrade, Ljubljana, Vienna, Paris and Rome.

Public collections

Tomislav Krizman's work can be found in the following public collections

• Museum of Contemporary Art, Zagreb (Muzej Suvremene Umjetnosti)
• National and University Library in Zagreb
• Croatian History Museum, Zagreb
• National Museum (Narodni Muzej), Zadar

References

Bibliography

• On the Graphical Arts (O grafičkim vještinama), Tomislav Krizman, Zagreb, Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts, 1952.