BELA IVANYI
Gyor, Hungary | 1936-2022
Bela Ivanyi was an Australian painter, printmaker and highly regarded art educator whose work was shaped by a lifelong engagement with the Australian landscape. Born in Győr, Hungary in 1936, Ivanyi emigrated to Australia in 1957 and settled in Sydney. He studied at the National Art School in East Sydney, graduating with a Diploma in Painting in 1968.
After graduating, Ivanyi taught painting and printmaking at Sydney's Workshop Art Centre from 1969 to 1972 before relocating to Cairns. In 1974 he joined the Australian Flying Art School, an experience that would have a profound influence on both his teaching and his art. After obtaining his pilot's licence, Ivanyi flew to major outback centres and remote communities throughout Australia as a senior lecturer, including working with Aboriginal artists in Cape York. He remained with the Flying Art School until 1980.
His extensive travels gave Ivanyi an intimate knowledge of the Australian landscape. Remote regions, particularly the dramatic landscapes of Central Australia and northern Australia, became recurring subjects in his work. Rather than simply recording a place, Ivanyi responded directly to its atmosphere, light, colour and character. His paintings and works on paper are often distinguished by energetic brushwork, strong colour and an immediate, expressive quality.
Ivanyi was equally committed to art education. From 1980 to 1993 he taught at the Newcastle College of Advanced Education and various TAFE colleges, and from 1979 to 1992 was a part-time lecturer in painting, drawing and design at the University of New South Wales. He later lectured in Art Education at the University of Newcastle.
His influence extended well beyond the major cities. Ivanyi established and led workshops for regional artists, including the long-running Cooee Bay artists' workshops near Yeppoon in Queensland. These workshops continued for decades and brought regional artists into contact with prominent contemporary Australian artists and teachers.
Working across painting, drawing and printmaking, Ivanyi developed a distinctive and recognisable interpretation of the Australian environment. His landscapes range from broad views of the outback to intimate observations of waterways, rocky crossings, trees and bushland.
Bela Ivanyi continued exhibiting and working as an artist throughout his life. He died in 2022, leaving a significant legacy both through his own work and through the generations of Australian artists he taught and encouraged. The National Art School commemorates him among its notable alumni.
