Page 9 - Christie's Inidian and HImalayan Works of Art, March 2019

PROPERTY FROM THE ESTATE OF
BARONESS EVA BESSENYEY

The late Baroness Eva Bessenyey was a fearless, independent woman decades ahead of her time. Born
30 March 1922 in Budapest, Hungary, Eva was trained as an artist at Smith College, and had careers
both as a layout editor for the publisher Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, and as a competitive endurance
horseback rider.

Baroness Bessenyey was the daughter of Baron and Baroness Gyorgy and Giselle Bessenyey. Her
diplomat father was the Hungarian Secretary of State-in-exile until the failed Hungarian Revolution
of 1956. Her mother spoke several languages and was an accomplished artist. Eva came to the United
States in 1947 and attended Smith College shortly after her arrival in the United States.
Eva was best known for her love of travel. Wanderlust would set in and she would tell her boss at
Harcourt Brace that, while she loved her job, she must leave to travel. Her boss would say, "I cannot
guarantee that your desk will be here when you get back." She spent almost two years travelling
through South America and the Amazon alone in the 1950s, and over the decades visited Egypt, Iran,
Yemen, Nepal, Turkey, as well as most European countries. Invariably, upon her return to New York she
would fnd her desk just as she had left it.
Her love of the Middle East led her to teach herself Arabic, a challenge she enjoyed until her passing.
She also spoke Hungarian, French, English, German and Spanish. Her travels fostered a love of rugs
from the Middle East (a selection of which will be ofered in Christie’s New York Interiors sale in August
2019) and she developed a reputation as an expert in the woven arts. She was a well-known fxture
in the New York Asian Art community, and a regular presence at the New York auctions of Indian,
Himalayan and Southeast Asian art. She was passionate about the Himalayan bronzes she collected
and selected each for its charm and beauty. Every piece from her collection was carefully considered
and is a testament to her keen, discerning eye and great taste.
Eva had a close relationship with her stepmother, the Countess Margit Sigray Bessenyey, founded
in part on their mutual love of horses. Eva trained Margit's Hungarian Warm Blood horses at Mt.
Aventine in Maryland and the Bitter Root Stock Farm in Hamilton, Montana. She then participated in
competitive trail rides in the United States on these horses, helping to reestablish the credentials of a
breed which the Countess and her friends were responsible for saving from the devastations of World
War II.
Per Eva’s wishes, a portion of the sale proceeds will beneft her favored charities, Hungarian House of
New York City and the Tibetan Nuns Project.

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