The Lost Stencil Plates of the Horvath Lithography Workshop
A measured quiet fills the Workshop, where ink rollers remain poised, and carved plates sit ready for pressing. Each tool, plate, and sheet implies repetitive routines suddenly halted, leaving the room suspended in the act of creation.
The Lithographer’s Discipline
These tools belonged to András Horvath, lithographer (b.
1876, Pécs), trained in a guild and commissioned to produce posters, book illustrations, and civic prints. His Hungarian annotations record plate order, ink density, and shading techniques. A folded note references his apprentice, Katalin Horvath, “ink plates for Thursday press,” showing a structured workflow of etching, inking, and pressing executed with meticulous care.
Organization of Plates and Tools
On the printing table, ink rollers and scrapers lie aligned; chisels and etching tools are organized by size. Shelves hold carved limestone plates stacked by project; reference sketches lean against the wall. A partially etched stencil rests weighted under a wooden block, reflecting András’s suspended method. Dust settles in the crevices of tools, capturing the last movements of precise hands abruptly stopped.
Evidence of Faltering
Later ledger entries reveal uneven print density and incomplete runs; several stencil plates are partially etched. Margin notes—“client revisions required”—are smudged. Tools are misaligned; half-finished prints lie in precarious stacks. András’s precision faltered under declining eyesight and fatigue, leaving projects unfinished and workshop routines indefinitely suspended. Each plate and sheet embodies suspended intention and interrupted skill.
In the Workshop’s final drawer, András’s last stencil plate ends mid-etch, prints incomplete. A penciled instruction—“finish with Katalin”—cuts off abruptly.
No record explains why he abandoned his work, nor why Katalin never returned.
The house remains abandoned, its printing tables, plates, and stencil sheets a quiet testament to interrupted lithography and unresolved dedication.
