The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 21, 2025

Heavy Burden, Esztergom

1916, printed 1980

André Kertész

(American, 1894–1985)
printer

Hyperion Press

America
gelatin silver print
Image: 18.7 x 24.8 cm (7 3/8 x 9 3/4 in.); Paper: 20.2 x 25.3 cm (7 15/16 x 9 15/16 in.)
Gift of Alan and Monah L. Gettner 2022.72
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

André Kertész’s photographs of Hungary, shot between 1912 and 1925, serve as a visual memoir of the artist’s early adult years.

Description

When Kertész was wounded in World War I, he was sent to Esztergom to recover. The town, which was the capital and royal residence of Hungarian kings until the mid-13th century, had fine examples of medieval and baroque architecture. Kertész chose to photograph this ramshackle, rustic corner instead. The difficulty of life there is mirrored in the struggles of the young girl carrying two buckets of water up a steep, unpaved path.
  • 1980-2021
    Alan and Monah L. Gettner (publishers), New York, NY, given to The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
    June 6, 2022-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Kertész, André, and Hilton Kramer. Hungarian Memories. 1982.
  • {{cite web|title=Heavy Burden, Esztergom|url=false|author=André Kertész, Hyperion Press|year=1916, printed 1980|access-date=21 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2022.72