At the Gate (1918)

Manó Vesztróczy was a student of Bertalan Székely in Budapest and of Herterich and Karl van Marr in Munich. After returning home in 1899, he went to Nagybánya, where he continued his studies at the  School of Crafts of Simon Hollósy. Later he also visited Paris. From 1891 he participated in exhibitions with plein air landscapes, genre paintings and portraits. From 1902 he was a teacher at the School of Industrial Drawing in Budapest. Since 1903, he has been a regular participant at the Kunsthalle's exhibitions. In 1906 he won the Rökk Prize, and in 1909 he received the Prize of the Lipótváros Casino. He served as a soldier in World War I, and his war paintings were shown, among others, at the 1918 exhibition of Hungarian artists in Belgrade, as well as at his first major (group) exhibition.

Initially known for his impressionist plein air paintings, he later came under the influence of the Eight and especially Károly Kernstok. He was a member and later president of the László Paál Society. At the first exhibition of the Society he presented the following painting entitled At the Gate. Vesztróczy won the painting prize of the exhibition. 'His landscapes are airy, delicate, rich in colour and tone. This is a serious, contemplative artist, who impresses us here with his meticulous sureness', wrote the Nemzeti Újság in 1923. The critics of the time were particularly impressed by his use of colour and his bold colour schemes. Vesztróczy's paintings can be found in the largest museums in Hungary, but also in Venice, Rome, Nuremberg and Genoa.