Lorand Fekete
Lorand was born on June 9, 1930, in the Transylvanian town of Nagyvarad (now Oradea), Romania. He attended a Hungarian Catholic high school, showing talent in the arts and in his studies and finishing in 1949. He then completed his medical education at the University of Tirgu-Murea Medical School. Lorand was required upon medical school graduation to work for three years in a rural area. There he became interested in old Hungarian folk art pottery and textiles and became a collector of them. Continuing his talent and interest in art, he attended three years of evening art college, learning sculpting, metal hammering, and ceramics. He participated in art exhibits in Oradea, Kolzsvar (Cluj), and in Bucharest. Eventually Lorand decided he could no longer bear the Communist regime and the nationalistic, chauvinistic oppression in Romania, so he and Edith fled, risking their lives to leave his beloved Transylvania. They spent six difficult months in a refugee camp and then immigrated to Dallas in 1966. After taking the necessary examinations to become a medical doctor in the United States, Lorand started a residency in neurology at Parkland Hospital associated with UT Southwestern Medical School. He retired in 2008. During all his years as a doctor, Lorand was also a sculptor. He had learned bronze casting at SMU and became known in the Dallas art community. He was a longstanding member of the Texas Visual Arts Association, participated in numerous exhibits in Dallas, and achieved the title of Signature Member. For the past fourteen years, his art has been represented by Southwest Gallery, where he had a very successful show and booksigning in 2015. He was also represented by the Csok Gallery in Budapest.