Beginning this month and extending into February, the Bryant Library will host an exhibit of artwork by longtime Roslyn resident George Gach. The exhibit will run from Jan. 16 to Feb. 11. In addition, a reception will be held on Saturday, Jan. 19, from 2 to 4 p.m.

A native of Hungary, Mr. Gach moved to the United States in 1952, settling a year later in Roslyn. In the states, Mr. Gach devoted himself to teaching, painting, and sculpting. His works embrace all forms of sport rendering into figures of action. All of his works are individual, unique pieces containing a multitude of themes that display, according to library officials, "an impelling felling of movement." Mr. Gach worked in a wide array of media, including steel, plastic, wood, stone, terra cotta, and bronze. He lived in Roslyn until his death in 1996.

During his time in the United States, Mr. Gach was honored with several distinguished awards, including the Audubon Artists Medal of Honor in 1966, the Gold Medal of the National Sculpture Society of New York in 1970, and the Percival Deitsch Award of the National Sculpture Society of New York in 1974.

As a young man, Mr. Gach appeared to have a promising artistic career in his native country. Born in Budapest in 1909, the son of the sculptor Stephen Gach, George studied first with his father, then at the Fine Arts Academy in Budapest. He later became assistant professor at that same academy. At age 30, he was chosen to sculpt a bust of Regent Horthy of Hungary.

During World War II, Mr. Gach served as a pilot in the Hungarian Air Force. In the course of the war, he was shot down and imprisoned by Russian forces. He managed to escape and return to Budapest. Shortly after the war, however, a communist regime came to power in Hungary and Mr. Gach left his homeland. In 1947, he fled to Beirut, Lebanon, where he became a pilot for Middle East Airlines.

Mr. Gach's years in the Middle East were also quite productive. He taught at Lebanon's Academy of Fine Arts. In addition, he continued to paint and sculpt and travel throughout Europe, North and South America and the South Pacific. Among the works he produced in Beirut was a bronze of the president of Lebanon.

Mr. Gach has been hailed as an "engaging, energetic, and dynamic individual who left a legacy of remarkable artistic achievement." The exhibit will honor not only his artwork, but it also falls on the 50th anniversary of his arrival to the United States.