Izvorni znanstveni članak
https://doi.org/10.31664/zu.2021.108.05
The Zagreb Period of Pjer Križanić
Frano Dulibić
; Filozofski fakultet Sveučilišta u Zagrebu, Zagreb, Hrvatska
Sažetak
Pjer Križanić (born as Petar, Glina, 19th May 1890–Belgrade, 21st January 1962), caricaturist, painter and art critic, moved in the circle of writers, artists and bohemians gathered around Matoš, who spent most of their days in cafés where the editors of certain magazines gathered. Matoš encouraged him to engage in caricature and to publish his first caricature, that of the writer Josip Kosor, in the Zagreb paper Koprive (1909). Although Križanić undeniably developed as a caricaturists and changed his artistic expression over time, this is now difficult to judge due to the small number of preserved cartoons. Križanić's artistic role models, primarily German and French caricaturists, can be discerned from his artistic style, but confirmation can also be found in his text "O karikaturi" [On Caricature], published in 1921 in the Kritika magazine. This text aptly reveals Križanić’s understanding of caricature as well as his role models on the contemporary European scene. As a relevant source of quality caricature, he cites the Munich weekly Simplicissimus, whose dozen top cartoonists were role models not only for Križanić, but for the majority of Central European caricaturists (Thomas Theodor Heine, Karl Arnold, Olaf Gulbransson, Edward Thöny, Bruno Paul, Ferdinand von Řezníček). Another source of Križanić's drawing role models can be found among the French caricaturists, from Daumier, through Toulouse Lautrec to Leandreu, Forain and Matoš's friend Rouveyer. Križanić's good knowledge of French caricaturists can probably be attributed to the time spent with Matoš, who knew the scene extremely well. Even the pseudonym Pjer, which Križanić accepted as his name, came from the French language. Matoš was the one who introduced the Zagreb caricaturists to the tradition and the contemporary scene of the French caricature, which nurtured a more complex drawing with a denser line structure, unlike the German tradition that was more inclined to simpler lines and clear forms of objects, characters and space, or rather to a stylization that reduced the forms to their basic features. Among the French caricaturists whom Križanić did not mention in his text on caricature, but who may have been close to him, we should mention such significant names as Félix Valloton, Jean-Louis Forain, and Caran D'Ache to some extent. The third group of caricaturists who influenced Križanić's artistic expression were his colleagues, the Zagreb cartoonists, starting with his professor Menci Clement Crnčić, to everyone gathered in the Koprive editorial office, primarily Slavko Vereš, but also Branimir Petrović, Franjo Maixner, Ivo Režek and Bogumil Car. All three sources had a certain influence on the formation of Križanić's approach to caricature, not only in terms of the form, but also the content, and contributed to the formation of Križanić's recognizable artistic expression. The analysis of Križanić's style reveals a clear contour line with no excessive detailing. It all comes down to essential features in equal measure: characters, objects and space. His compositions are clean, balanced and rhythmic, and the space is simplified and flat, as if he invariably wants to move away from real space, emphasizing the fact that this is actually a space of caricature and thus making it clear that he truly understands the nature of the cartoon medium. He knew how to use expressive and surreal elements in his drawings, but we should not overlook the occasional caricature from the interwar period drawn in pure art deco style. Križanić's legacy belongs equally to the Croatian and Serbian culture, but can also be interesting for the audience beyond our borders due to its universal messages that are still relevant today.
Ključne riječi
Hrčak ID:
270737
URI
Datum izdavanja:
1.7.2021.
Posjeta: 1.295 *