06/02/2026
Lajos Kozma (1884–1948) was a providential figure for Central European visual culture, often dubbed a "total artist" (Gesamtkunstwerk) due to the ease with which he navigated between architecture, furniture design, book graphics, and illustration.
Kozma began under the influence of Béla Lajta and was initially fascinated by folk art and the Secession style. In 1913, he founded the Budapesti Műhely (Budapest Workshop), inspired by the famous Wiener Werkstätte (Vienna Workshops). His goal was to bring art into everyday objects, promoting a unified interior design where furniture, wallpaper, and lighting fixtures formed a harmonious whole.
Kozma's career can be divided into two major periods, both reflected in his furniture design:
Kozma’s Baroque (1920s): This is the period during which he created pieces like the highboard shown here. Although the forms were geometric (precursors to Art Deco), he added curved ornamental elements, sculpted legs, and precious inlays that recalled the opulence of the Baroque, reinterpreted in a modern bourgeois key.
Later, Kozma embraced the International Style. He designed famous villas (such as those on Lupa Street in Budapest) with white lines, flat roofs, and wide windows. The furniture became more austere, emphasizing metal tubes and flat wooden surfaces without ornaments.
Kozma was the favorite architect of the intellectual and financial elite in interwar Budapest. He did not just design the building, but every interior detail as well. Buying a "Kozma" meant buying social status. Today, his houses are considered historical monuments and are studied for the ingenious way they used small spaces to create a sense of luxury.
Few know that Lajos Kozma was also a genius graphic artist. He illustrated numerous books (such as the works of Endre Ady) and created posters that revolutionized the advertising of the era. His graphic style was often more playful and exuberant than his architecture.
After World War II, he was appointed professor at the University of Art and Design in Budapest, but died shortly thereafter (1948). Today, Hungary's national design award bears his name.
