Willy Pogany

William Andrew ("Willy") Pogany (born Vilmos Andreas Pogány) (August 1882 – 30 July 1955) was a prolific Hungarian illustrator of children's and other books.

Biography

Pogany was born in Szeged, Hungary. He studied at Budapest Technical University and in Munich and Paris.[1] Pogany came to America via Paris and London. While in London, he produced his four masterpieces, Samuel Taylor Coleridge's The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (1910), Richard Wagner's Tannhauser (1911), Parsifal (1912) and Lohengrin (1913).

In 1918 he illustrated a children's retelling of Homer, The Adventures of Odysseus and the Tale of Troy written by Padraic Colum.

Pogany's best known works consist of illustrations of classic myths and legends done in the Art Nouveau style. He also worked as an art director on several Hollywood films, including Fashions of 1934 and Dames.

Pogany authored three art instruction books: Willy Pogany's Drawing Lessons, Willy Pogany's Oil Painting Lessons, and Willy Pogany's Water Color Lessons, Including Gouache.

Asked how to say his name, he told the Literary Digest that in America it was po-GAH-ny. "However, in my native Hungary this name is pronounced with the accent on the first syllable with a slightly shorter o and the gany is as the French -gagne (the y is silent)": PO-gahn.[2]

In his 1952 autobiography Witness, Whittaker Chambers described "Willi Pogany" ("long a scene designer at the Metropolitan Opera House") as the brother of Joseph Pogany.[3]

Willy Pogany sued Chambers for $1 million but lost in court[4] and appeals.[5] According to Time magazine, "A lower court had found that Chambers, in his mistaken identification, had not maliciously implied that Willy was closely associated with 'a Communist leader and spy'," who had been "once (until Stalin liquidated him) Communist Hungary's puppet Commissar of War."[5]

Pogany's public art can be seen on the walls of the Ringling Mansion in Sarasota, FL, the theatre of El Museo del Barrio at 1230 Fifth Ave., and the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre on 45th St in NYC.

Pogany died in Manhattan, New York City.

Bibliography

  1. ^ Guide to the Willy Pogany papers at the University of Oregon
  2. ^ Funk, Charles Earle (1936) What's the Name, Please?. New York: Funk & Wagnalls
  3. ^ Chambers, Whittaker (1952). Witness. Random House. pp. 214. ISBN 0-89526-571-0. 
  4. ^ "Newsmakers". TIME. October 27, 1952. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,890408,00.html. 
  5. ^ a b "Newsmakers". TIME. February 14, 1955. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,807023-2,00.html. 

Books Published and/or Illustrated by Willy Andrew Pogany

He has illustrated more than 150 volumes. Including:

Source Animation Archives

External links