Ivan Tabaković
Painter, ceramic artist, professor, member of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts
He studied painting at art academies in Budapest (1917), Zagreb (1919–1922, 1924) and Munich. Tabaković lived in Zagreb (until 1930), Novi Sad (1930–1937) and Belgrade (1937–1977). He was a lecturer at the School of Applied Art (1938–1941), Art Academy (1945–1948) and the Academy of Applied Arts (1948–1971) in Belgrade and was a member of artistic groups Djelo (1926–1929), Zemlja (1929–1935), Dvanaestorica (1937) and Šestorica (1954).
Ivan Tabaković became involved with ceramic art during his studies in Zagreb, thanks to the sculptor and ceramicist Hinko Juhn, the founder of the studio for ceramics at the Zagreb Academy. At the International Exposition of Modern Industrial and Decorative Arts, held in Paris in 1925, Tabaković presented a ceramic plate and three ceramic pitchers. As a member of the Zagreb-based artistic group Djelo (1926–1929), he presented his works in ceramics at the Art Pavilion in Zagreb and in Belgrade in 1927. Ten years later, at the exhibition of the group Dvanaestorica, held in 1937 in Belgrade, Tabaković’s works in ceramics were assessed as “the most beautiful pieces to be demonstrated in this branch of art in our country” – to cite Milan Kašanin. That same year, Tabaković moved from Novi Sad to Belgrade, where he would become one of the most prominent art pedagogue who instructed the post-war generations of artists, especially ceramic artists – he was the head of the Department of Ceramics at the Academy of Applied Arts since 1948.
Károly Baranyi
Sculptor, ceramic artist
Károly Baranyi studied painting and sculpture in Munich, Budapest and Paris. In Paris (1924–1925), he studied at the studio of Camille Garnier. He lived in Budapest (1925–1931) and Novi Sad (since 1931). Along with sculpture, he practiced ceramics, just like his wife, Zlata Markov Baranyi. They jointly exhibited their works in ceramics in Novi Sad, in 1934.