Bortnyik Sándor, MA Almbum 1921 

Sándor Bortnyik's MA Album, made around 1921, employs a language of geometric forms that speaks volumes about the artistic currents of its time. Notice the interplay of circles, squares, and rectangles, rendered in bold primary colors. These shapes are not merely abstract; they evoke the spirit of the machine age, reflecting a fascination with industrial forms and the promise of modernity. Consider the circle, a symbol of cosmic unity and the self, juxtaposed with the rigid lines of squares and rectangles, representing the rational order of the modern world. The use of primary colors—red, yellow, and blue—grounds the image in a sense of elemental simplicity, reminiscent of the Bauhaus movement's emphasis on functional design. These colors recur throughout history, from religious iconography to advertising, each time taking on new layers of meaning. Bortnyik's composition engages us on a subconscious level, tapping into our collective memory of shapes and colors as fundamental building blocks of our visual world. The image resonates with a sense of optimism and forward momentum, capturing the zeitgeist of an era defined by rapid technological change and utopian aspirations.