21/06/2026
One of the smallest works in the City’s Art and Heritage Collection is Stefan Szonyi’s whimsical Cricket Trophy. Measuring twelve centimetres tall, this intricate ceramic reflects the artist’s interest in exploring Australian themes and identity through sculpture. Precariously balancing on a curved patch of grass, adorning a trophy for the District Cricket Club’s Most Versatile player, a tiny figure wearing a baseball cap bows his head to his chin. Using satire, the wicketkeeper is frozen in time kicking his leg to the sky, whilst clutching a cricket ball beside three stumps.
Born in Germany in 1945, Szonyi migrated to Australia in 1959 with his Hungarian parents. His miniature ceramics often feature a lone man with neat black hair in settings that are overtly Australian. The man depicted in these works is the artist himself. Using irony and flamboyance to explore everyday experiences of living in Australia, Szonyi references his European heritage and the long-held tradition of modelling miniature figurines.
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Szonyi was part of a group of artists living in Daylesford, including Bob and Lorraine Jenyns and Michael Leunig. Working as a secondary school teacher, he carved out time to produce his intricately moulded, hand painted ceramic sculptures but declared having little to do with the contemporary art scene. After winning the gold medal at the 37th International Exhibition of Ceramic Art, Faenza Italy in 1979, Szonyi continued to work from regional Victoria, showing his work in competitions, group shows and survey exhibitions. Today his work is held in numerous State and Regional Collections, including the National Gallery of Australia, National Gallery of Victoria and the Art Gallery of South Australia.
This piece will be shown in Encounters at the Civic Precinct and Community Hub from 24 June 2026 to 29 January 2027.
Artwork details: Stefan Szonyi, Cricket Trophy, date unknown (worked from late-1970s to mid-1990s) Earthenware and metal 12 x 7cm
