Featured artist: Michael Meszaros

‘Heliconia’ fabricated copper, 145 cm h x 85 cm w

Michael Meszaros comes from a renowned artistic family. His father Andor Meszaros was a well known sculptor and medal maker, and between he and Michael, they have produced many of the sculptures that you see punctuating the Melbourne city landscape.
Examples of Michael’s major public works include, ‘Birds’ on St. Kilda Rd, ‘Fawkner’ portrait on Collins St, ‘Reredos panel’ at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, Warragul and ‘Rainbow’ in Bourke St. Like his father, he is also a highly regarded medal maker and in 1969 he received the Churchill Fellowship to study at the Scuola dell’Arte Della Medaglia, Mint of Rome.
His work is diverse as he creates art in a style appropriate for the commission. “I have never been a believer in the notion of a signature style. I think that it is a limiting and crippling notion which cuts an artist off from most of the wide range of artistic possibilities.”
Michael completed a Bachelor of Architecture at the University of Melbourne in 1968 and attributes his approach to sculptural commissions to his experience working as an architect. “I treat a sculptural commission more like an architect in this regard.”
He attributes his non-adherence to a particular style as being the reason for his longevity in the art world. He has been a full-time artist since 1970. “Regarding the notion of fashion in art- I have come to realise that the way to survive as a sculptor in the long term is to ignore artistic fashions and concentrate on work which has something to say at a deeper level than mere style.”

‘Willy Willy’ Bronze 53 cm h x 19 cm w

His father also worked in a range of styles, including the naturalism that he was most known for, which was against the style of the period which was Abstraction. Meszaros recognises his father’s infl uence on his own work, particularly his versatility, “I am very proud of my father and his work and I have no hesitation in acknowledging that my artistic origins are intimately rooted in his influence”. In 1972, when his father died, Michael took over his father’s business which was in part concerned with the art of medal making. “The Medallion part of my work was also a direct result of his example. My work is very different to his, but the idea of medallic art stems from him.”

‘Feminine Dilemma’ 2009 Bronze (450 mm long and about 350
mm high) (All photography courtesy of the artist)

Michael is always in high demand. He has recently completed a bronze bust, “I am working on two pieces for a client derived from a work I had in the last Annual Show, fabricated in copper. I have just won a commission to do a bronze relief for Mirboo North, in Gippsland to represent the famous photo from the recent bush fires of the man giving a Koala a drink.” He also still creates portrait medals and two exhibition medals are currently being created. “I always have lots of things running parallel, which I like”. His work can also be found in official collections around the world including, Australia, Stockholm, New Jersey, the British Museum, Chrischurch NZ, Warsaw and The Hague.

‘Coming Together’ 2005 4.1 metres high, fabricated in Stainless
steel and copper ( Nexus Housing Development at 105
Scarborough Street, Southport, Gold Coast).