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Frida Kahlo’s Hungarian lover – Miklós Muray
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Besides being the lover of world-famous Mexican painter Frida Kahlo, Miklós Muray was a Hungarian-born American photographer and Olympic sabre fencer. He was also considered to be the master of the three-colour carbro process.
Történelmi Őrültek posted an interesting post about Miklós Muray on their Facebook page. He certainly lived a fascinating life.
https://www.facebook.com/oruletek.tortenelmi/posts/2172787789644741
His education and early life
Miklós Muray [born Miklós Mandl] was born in Szeged, Hungary in 1892.
Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org By Carl Van VechtenHe attended a graphic arts school in Budapest, where he studied lithography, photoengraving, and photography. He also studies in Munich, then he took a three-year course in colour photoengraving in Berlin, where he learned to make colour filters. At the end of his course, he went to work for the publishing company Ullstein.
In 1913, with 25$ in his pocket, he travelled to the United States. He was 21 years old when he arrived on Ellis Island.
Even though he knew very little English, he got a job as a colour printer at a print shop in Brooklyn. He spent his evening learning English.
Art career
By 1920, Muray opened a portrait studio at his 2-room-apartment in Greenwich Village, while still working at his union job as an engraver. He worked in one room and lived in the other. In 1921, he received a commission from Harper’s Bazaar to do a portrait of Broadway actress Florence Reed. These photos and his unique style made him famous quite quickly.
Soon after, he was having photographs published each month in Harper’s Bazaar, but his photos also appeared in Vogue, Ladies’ Home Journal, and The New York Times.
He took photos of almost all of the biggest celebrities of New York City at that time. He also did fashion and advertising work.
If he remained in Hungary, he may have died during WWII and if not, we would probably not know him today. Ezceptional people with talents are seldom appreciated in Hungary during their life. Once they become famous abroad and die, Hungary claims the fame for them.