Lajos Daniel was born in Budapest 1934. He was in early childhood interested in the human character and frequently portrayed family members and friends. Two painter artists Anna Èber and Géza Szegedi Molnár, who was good friends to the parents, recognized the boy’s talent and thought him a lot about painting. In 1950 at the age of sixteen he was admitted to the Academy of Fine Art in Budapest. That time even the education was strongly influenced by political propaganda and he could hardly tolerate it. His financial difficulties were also growing and the family which was discriminated as “class-alien” was not capable to help him. He interrupted his studies and worked at various factories and finally in the coal-mine at Várpalota.
After the revolution against the Russian occupation Lajos Daniel immigrated to Sweden in 1956. At the beginning he was employed as woodman in Johannishus and later at the Volvo factory in Olofström but he never gave up his artistic ambitions. Less than a year later he started to paint again and after a period of intensive self-learning he was ready to attend the Royal Academy of Art in Stockholm between 1958-62. Since than Lajos Daniel painted a large number of portraits at the request of various county councils, municipalities, health organizations, churches and private persons. These works show the artist’s special sense of capturing a person’s spirit, the essence of their personalities. However, Daniel’s eternal model is the Nature. His landscapes which interpret the nature in a most personal way were highly appreciated at the exhibitions. About 40 paintings-mainly portraits done on commission- can be seen in various Swedish public buildings.
