Pensiunea Pictorilor

The name Pensiunea Pictorilor has a close connection with the history of Baia Mare. Although, our city is famous for mining, hence the name (bath = mine), and chestnuts, hence the name of the City Days (Chestnut Festival), our city hides another treasure: the Colony of Painters. Here were laid the foundations of the Baia Mare school of painting, which strongly influenced Hungarian painting. You've probably come this far and wondered where the connection came from. Strada Pictorilor, which is right next door, became the place where artists or students looked for rent during their stay. Some older neighbors have told us that the large number of artists, mostly painters, is closely related to today's street name. Under these conditions, the name of the pension came naturally in the rich historical context of the place. The project "Pension of Painters" started as a dream and slowly became a reality through the involvement of our whole family. We were all involved.

The name Pensiunea Pictorilor has a close connection with the history of Baia Mare. Although, our city is famous for mining, hence the name (bath = mine), and chestnuts, hence the name of the City Days (Chestnut Festival), our city hides another treasure: the Colony of Painters. Here were laid the foundations of the Baia Mare school of painting, which strongly influenced Hungarian painting.

In 1896, Hollosy Simon, together with his painting school, came to Baia Mare and, impressed by the city, decided to settle here for the next years. The success due to Simon creates the context of the formation of a Baia Mare School of Painting. If at the beginning the artists met in several barracks in the Municipal Park "Regina Maria", time and European recognition makes those here to request a new location for 8 workshops. The actual construction of the Colony, in the place where it is today, opposite the Painters' Pension, begins after the issuance of the decision by the Local Council in 1898, but the death of Mayor Oliver Thurman makes the process more difficult.

In 1901, Hollosy Simon left town. A year later, the foundations of the Baia Mare School of Painting were laid here. The remaining artists, but also the students who came, will have an important role in introducing Impressionism and Post-Impressionism in Hungarian painting. During that period, Baia Mare was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.