Description

This powerful bronze relief by Róbert Csíkszentmihályi pays tribute to Imre Madách’s philosophical drama The Tragedy of Man (1861), one of the cornerstones of Hungarian intellectual history. The inscription, “Amit kivívok, méltán enyém” (“What I win is rightfully mine”), encapsulates the human struggle for knowledge, freedom, and moral integrity.

Depicting Adam and Eve in the aftermath of the Fall, Csíkszentmihályi captures a moment of awakening — a transition from innocence to awareness. The figures, moving forward through an undulating landscape of symbolic forms, embody the tension between transgression and transcendence.

The artist’s modeling is dynamic and expressive: muscular yet vulnerable bodies emerge from a textured bronze surface that shimmers with inner light. The relief’s composition suggests both the cosmic scale of creation and the intimate drama of human destiny.

In this work, Csíkszentmihályi transforms Madách’s literary vision into sculpture, fusing myth and modernity. The result is a deeply human meditation on striving — the idea that meaning and ownership arise only through effort and conflict.

Bronze works inspired by The Tragedy of Man are rare within Csíkszentmihályi’s oeuvre and are particularly prized for their intellectual depth and sculptural vitality.

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