Angyal, Béla (1847 - 1928)

Painter and designer. He took a course in painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna, then became a drawing instructor at Körmöcbánya. A painter of Naturalist compositions, he earned a reputation primarily as a designer of ceramics and lace work. He was the first artist to set himself the goal of renewing old Hungarian lace work design. Together with his sister, Emma Angyal, he established the Körmöcbánya School for Lacemaking. In his own design work he relied on the motifs of Hungarian ’’floral Renaissance”, adjusted to the contemporary style. From the 1880s onwards, his works were frequently displayed at exhibitions inside and outside Hungary: at the Millennium Exhibition of 1896, at the Paris International Exhibition of 1900, as well as at other exhibitions in Turin, Milan, Vienna and Brussels. He won several prizes and honorary diplomas.