After an initial education in engineering, Károly Markó began his artistic studies in 1818 in Pest and four years later entered the academy in Vienna. In addition to the realistic Hungarian landscapes he painted, the artist supported himself with portraits and miniatures on porcelain. From 1830 until 1832, he worked in Kismarton. The Viennese banker Geymüller was instrumental in making possible Markó's move to Rome in 1832. There he started painting idyllic landscapes with mythological or biblical subjects and peasant scenes. In 1838 he moved to Pisa and two years later left for Florence to teach at the academy. From 1847 on he lived in Count Gherardesca's Villa Appeggi near Florence, where, for example, he painted the Cleveland painting. In 1853 Markó visited Vienna and received a warm welcome in Budapest. Even while living in Italy, Markó stayed in touch with the artistic community in Hungary and was an important figure in the development of Hungarian painting. He regularly sent paintings to exhibitions there, had Hungarian pupils in Italy, and, in 1845, submitted a design for the new parliament building in Budapest. During his lifetime, he was well known. In 1861 most of his estate went to the National Museum in Budapest. Markó had three sons who also became painters: Károly (1822-1891), András (1824-1895), and Ferenc (1832-1874).
