FERENC VANCZÁK (1908-1988) La Science, Les Arts, La technique, Le Spirituel, one-of-a-kind piece, commissioned in 1947 for the personal office of a leading hotelier in Perpignan. Exceptional, richly carved, molded oak cabinet. The front opens onto four full doors, each featuring a title allegory carved in high relief. The lower belt and upper entablature are carved with stylized geometric motifs. Feet with finned fronts and central carved geometrical motifs. The top is crowned with a fluted scroll. The lock escutcheons are in wrought-iron with a patina finish. The interior features shelves and drawers. H.213cm - W.300cm - D.54cm Historical background: Ferenc Vanczák, born in Budapest in 1908, is one of those highly talented sculptors born in Hungary who spent much of their artistic career in France, then the land of the avant-garde. After being trained in the art of sculpture in his homeland, he continued his training in Berlin, Munich and finally Vienna. Quickly recognized in his own country, he became a member of the Hungarian Royal Society of Decorative Arts, and moved to France in 1937. Fighting in the ranks of foreign volunteers during the Second World War, he settled in Perpignan after demobilization. From then on, he spent most of his career in the Pyrénées-Orientales region. An adept of direct-cut sculpture and pure line, his work was marked by modernity. He took on several public commissions in his adopted region. His golden period was that of direct carving on wood (immediately before and after the war), and few works have survived from this period. This piece of furniture, specially commissioned in 1947 for the personal office of a leading hotelier in Perpignan, reveals the full extent of this sculptor's talent and mastery, and his work is still marked by his Hungarian roots.