How to present art models redefining the public sphere

Initially, I have to state that in relation to progressive contemporary art in Hungary of which
I have the most first hand experience one can talk about audiences, only in conceptual, and
not in sociological terms. I mean that in most of the cases the number of visitors in
contemporary art exhibitions, the people attending art events, the readers of contemporary art
magazines do not reach such quantities that could be analyzed with serious sociological
methods.
ovelty is also somewhat problematic in this context, i.e. how to define a previous state of
affairs compared to what we call new audiences. !egarding the situation before the political
change of "#$# we have to distinguish one type of %old& audience, mostly %outsiders& who
visited official art exhibitions as part of the compulsory program of, for instance, factory
brigades 'I(), and a completely different type of audience, mostly %insiders& who
participated in the events of underground art initiatives. *he distance between these two
layers of audiences corresponds to the changing structure of the local art scenes in close
correspondence with the transformations of public sphere
"
in various historical moments and
geographical locations. *o be able to formulate a paradigm for such divided public spheres I
have to simplify the picture, saying that the official public sphere lacked criticality, and the
un+official one visibility and accessibility ,as well as statistically relevant quantities of
audience-.
*he %new audiences& that emerged at the turn of the millennium again are very diverse,
resulting from different processes. .e could equally consider people queuing in front of large
musems to see old masters exhibitions, or temporary solo shows of popular realist,
impressionist, or postimpressionist painters/ or that restricted group of people who form loose
communities rather than audiences connected to participatory, activist, and collaborative art.
1 I use the phrase 0public sphere& in a neutral, general sense meaning neither the Habermasian liberal,
bourgeois, ,or civil- consensual space ,12rgen Habermas3 The Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere:
An Inquiry into a Category of Bourgeois Society, trans. *homas 4urger with the assistance of 5rederick
6awrence, 7ambridge3 8I* 9ress, "#$#-/ originally published as (truktur+wandel der :ffentlichkeit. ;armstadt3
Hermann 6uchterhand <erlag, "#=>.-, nor the concepts developed as its critique, like the %agonistic public
space& by 7hantal 8ouffe ,?rnesto 6aclau and 7hantal 8ouffe3 Hegemony and Socialist Strategy: Toard a
!adical "emocratic Politics, trans. .inston 8oore and 9aul 7ammack, 6ondon3 <erso, "#$@.-, since these
models are only applicable to democratic societies, but I do not agree with (imon (heikh either who says that
that the communist public space %is no public space as such& ,(imon (heikh3 %!epresentation, 7ontestation and
9ower3 *he Artist as 9ublic Intellectual.& "BC>BBD http3CCeipcp.net- there were always Eournals, radio programs,
and physical public spaces where people could talk, argue and discuss current issues, even if the public sphere as
a whole was dysfunctional, controlled or censored, but it never ceased to exist as a structure of mediated or
physical spaces for discursive activities.
1
:r equally those %users& who happen to watch youtube videos uploaded by artists, comment
on artblogs, discuss tactical media actions, or play around with the %gadgets& in interactive,
new media exhibitions. Audiences interpreted as consumers also became a new focus of
cultural politics and sponsorship applying evaluation models of marketing on %culture
industries&. 9reoccupation with public, especially in quantitative measures, is associated with
the so called %corporate turn&

in western countries, a phenomenon that cannot be directly
adapted to contemporary arts in post+socialist countries. 8arket oriented or not, corporate
sponsorship is not yet an influential force in the contemporary art scene in Hungary and this
corresponds to the historical differences in the structure of the public sphere. Freat quantities
of visitors and viewers are still only attached to either institutions promoting a very traditional
notion of art, or such media that make possible the consumption of art proEects without
reflection on their art+status.
*o what extent these interpretations of audience constitute a challenge to art theory is also a
question dependent on our historical and geographical focus. .ithout a direct reference to the
actual movements and tendencies of late >B century art, as early as "#=B Hans Feorg
Fadamer reEected the aesthetical differentiation of the art obEect. He argued for the necessity
of contextual interpretation ,moreover application + though still in a dialogical situation
assuming a solitary recipient-, conceiving the artwork as an extraordinary event happening in
time and space.
th
At the same time, partly relying on 4enEaminGs essays written in the "#>Bies
and "#HBies
>
, 4arthes
H
, ;ebord
D
, 5lusser
@
, and 4audrillard
=
founded the theoretical grounds
for approaching art influenced by new technologies, the rise of mass movements and
subcultures
I
from the "#=Bies on. (tarting from A. 7. ;antoGs article from "#=D
$
, theories of
the artworld, as an institutional framework of art emerged and made possible ,though not in
the case of ;anto- to deal with audience not as an individual subEect but as various social
ina 8Jntmann3 9laying the .ild 7hild. Art Institutions in a (ituation of 7hanged 9ublic Interest. in3 :pen.
nr. "D. http3CCwww.skor.nlCid.phpC8K7HK#=*8A:9?"D
th Hans Feorg Fadamer3 *ruth and 8ethod. *ranscending the Aesthetic ;imension. german "#=B.
2 .alter 4enEamin3 The #or$ of Art in the Age of %echanical !eproduction."#H@. and Arcades 9roEect "#>I+
"#DB.
3 !oland 4arthes3 %ythologies ,"#@I-The &ashion System ,"#=I- Camera 'ucida ,"#$B-
4 Fuy ;ebord3 The Society of the Spectacle, "#=I
5 <ilLm 5lusser3 Toards a Philosophy of Photography, "#$H Ins Mniversum der technischen 4ilder. ?uropean
9hotography, FJttingen, "#$@. (achgeschichten) Bollman *erlag +,,- ".sseldorf/
= 1ean 4audrillard3 The Consumer Society: %yths and Structures ,"#IB- &or a Critique of the Political 0conomy
of the Sign ,"#I>- The %irror of Production ,"#IH- Symbolic 01change and "eath ,"#I=- (imulacra and
(imulation ,"#$"-
7 !oszak, *heodore, The %a$ing of a Counter Culture: !eflections on the Technocratic Society and Its 2outhful
3pposition, "#=$C"#=#, ;oubleday, ew Nork,
8 Art and the Aesthetic: An Institutional Analysis. Ithaca3 N3 7ornell M9, "#ID. Art Circle: A Theory of Art.
2
groups. Howard (. 4ecker
#
described the relationship between art and the state setting up the
parallel approaches of art as a tradable commodity and as something politically good or bad.
4ecker also provided us with models for underground art ,%art disapproved by the state
creates its self+organized places, institutions and audiences&
"B
- and the hierarchical and
parallel layers of artworlds ,mavericks, folk and naOve artists
""
- also reflecting on the
phenomenon of the then already very developed subcultures. ?xamining the role of the
institutional setting in the process of reception ,in this case conceived as a conceptually
shaped architectural environment- 4rian :G;oherty reconsidered the viewer not as an eye but
as a body moving in the space of the exhibition, thus used phenomenologyGs sensitivity to
corporal+experiences interpreting current institutional trends of art.
">
5inally one can also
mention relational aesthetics
"H
, the concept of new genre public art
"D
, and that of collaborative
and participatory practices
"@
, which constructed a theoretical framework for new audiences
emerging at the turn of the millennium. (o from a globalized point of view it seems that all
these evolving theoretical approaches show that art theory when used simply as the theory of
art can be an integral and synchronic part of the discourse of contemporary art. At the same
time academic and philosophical aesthetics does not have such ambitions at all, or + as the
discourse on the end of art
"=
and art history so dominant in the $Bies and #Bies.signals + shows
considerable puzzlement at dealing with non+obEect+based and neo+avant+garde art practices
.here I see the greatest challenge today is how to include the neo+avant+garde art and
progressive initiatives that were produced in, or defined by the legacy of divided public
spheres into art theories relying exclusively on the social frameworks and art histories of
western countries. 8oreover, how to claim individual consideration for various art practices
in ?astern+?uropean countries avoiding stereotypical classifications, unifying diverse
phenomena under such attributes as %communist block& or %post+socialist&, even if the artists
of these countries often only get into contact with each other through western mediation.
9 Howard (. 4ecker, Art #orlds) ,4erkeley3 Mniversity of 7alifornia 9ress, "#$>-
10 4ecker3 "$B+"#"
11 4ecker3 >>=+>I".
"> 4rian :G;oerthy3 %Inside the .hite 7ube3 *he Ideology of the Fallery (pace& Artforum, "#I=.
13 icolas 4ourriaud3 !elational Aesthetics) 9aris3 9resses du rLel, >BB>.
14 (uzanne 6acy, ed.3 %apping the Terrain: (e 4enre Public Art ,(eattle3 4ay 9ress, "##@-.
15 7laire 4ishop3 %Antagonism and !elational Aesthetics&, :ctober ,""B, 5all >BBD-3 @"+I#. %*he (ocial *urn3
7ollaboration and its ;iscontents& Artforum ,5ebruary >BB=-.
16 <attimo Fianni3 %8orte o tramonto dellGarte& !ivista ?stetica. ,"#$B. D- "+>=.
3
1ust to highlight the problem, that also affects the question of audiences it is worth comparing
the following data. .hile in "#I> >>$,=>"
"I
visitors of ;ocumenta @ were discussing Harald
(zeemanGs curatorial concept %Puestioning reality pictorial worlds today& that illustrated its
theses with various obEects including images of the popular culture, as well as performances,
actions, and 1oseph 4euysG political debate office/ at the only granted international
participation of Hungarian artists, the Hungarian 9avilion of <enice 4iennial a ational
7ommissioner with no curatorial concept was presenting two third line artists working in
post+impressionist styles.
"$
At the same time non+official sites, such as the chapel+studio of
FyJrgy FalQntai in 4alatonboglQr had very current program with happenings, conceptual art
exhibitions and international collaborations.
"#
*he issue of quality, professionalism and
curatorial concepts could not be raised seriously in such ad hoc exhibitions organized in
empty cellars, culture houses, or club rooms, even if such places often presented works
comparable to the tendencies of international art, and were also part of an international
network, which was the only form of critical but not public + assessment.
>B

(uch cutting edge, self+organized underground counter+art scenes evolved in western
countries too, at various point of the history, like in "$@@ when 7ourbetGs organized a solo
shows for himself near the 9alais des 4eaux+Arts where paintings selected for the .orld
?xhibition were on display/
>"
or the late "#$Bies warehouse exhibitions of Foldsmith
undergraduates who later became known as the Noung 4ritish Artists. *hese examples of
underground initiatives only became legendary because they faced the surface very fast and
had a heavy impact on mainstream institutions and big masses of audiences. .hat happens if
certain cutting edge art practices remain excluded from wide public circulation and do not
reach the general audience for twenty yearsR
17 http3CCdocumentaarchiv.stadt+kassel.deCminiwebsCdocumentaarchivSeCB$>BBCindex.html
18 *he works of ?ndre ;omanovszky and AndrQs 'iss agy were shown in the Hungarian 9avilion in "#I>.
http3CCwww.biennale>BB@.huCkicsinySbCHSkiallSe.htmT"#I>. It is interesting to note that in "#$D the Hungarian
9avilion still presented Imre <argaGs and FyJrgy <adQszGs quite obsolete oeuvre while the 0Aperto U$D& invited
FQbor 4Vdy, influential filmmaker and practitioner of video+art.
19 http3CCwww.artpool.huCboglarC"#I>CchronoI>.html
>B :nly in "#I> numerous Hungarian artists participated in various international proEects such as the exhibitions
in Faleria 5oksal, .arsaw, 9oland ,8. ?rdLly, Fy. 1ovQnovics, 6. 6akner, Fy. 9auer, *. (zentEVby, ?. *Vt-/
'unstverein 'aponier <echta, Fermany, 0Mngarische Avantgarde UI>& ,I. 4ak, *. Hencze, ;. 8aurer, I. Qdler,
Fy. 9auer, ?. *Vt, 6. 6akner, *. (zentEVby, etc.- from the collection of 12rgen .eichardt/ 6ikovni (alon, ovi
(ad, Mrednici FaleriEe, Nugoslavia, 08ladi umetnici iz 4udimpeste& ,Fy. FalQntai, I. Haraszty, *. Hencze, I.
'eser2, *. 9app, etc.-/ and the publication A$tuelle 5unst in 3steuropa, ,;u 8ont, 'Jln- ed.3 'laus Froh ,I.
4ak, 8. ?rdLly, Fy. 1ovQnovics, 6. 6akner, 1. 8aEor, ;. 8aurer, Fy. 9auer, F. 9erneczky, *. (zentEVby, ?. *Vt,
etc.-. http3CCwww.artpool.huCkontextusCkronologiaC"#I>.html
>" A closer scrutiny of the documents shows that 7ourbet was actually supported by many public art institutions
so his act was not really motivated by necessity rather aggressive self+management and critique of the Academy.
9atricia 8ainardi3 %7ourbetUs ?xhibitionism& 4a6ette des Beau17Arts ,""$ ;ecember "##"-3 >@H+>== .
4
Among all these possible approaches to the problem of audiences I would like to pick upon
the one that intends to trace an underground, nuclear public space created by some
contemporary art initiations in the IBies and $Bies and that now, after the political changes
looks for and proEects a possible continuation of these %context+and observer oriented&
>>

practices. In the following I am going to make a very brief survey of contemporary art events
that happened in the last few decades in Hungary, and that redefined the genre of the art
exhibition transforming the exhibition space into a discursive site
>H
. I focus on such art events
,happenings, actions, talks, debates, one+night exhibitions- that aimed to establish a direct
contact with the audience transforming it to participants, an active and self+responsible public.
8y aim is to regain a contextual and historical continuity for event+ and community based
contemporary art practices as well as to attempt to %translate& the local art history of the past
decades into the %language& of international art theory.
In the =Bies there were a lot of flat exhibitions in 4udapest, mostly conceived as salon
gatherings, until in "#== a >B and a >> year old writer *amQs (zentEVby and FQbor AltorEai +
without fine art background, but with the help of 8iklVs ?rdLly organized in a private cellar
the first happening in Hungary entitled %6unch& + that redefined immediately how art was
produced and presented in the following years. *he event was professionally prepared,
initiation cards were sent, photo and film documentation was arranged for, and Eournalists
were invited
>D
, even entrance fee was charged/ and at the same time very radical pushing
against the limits of the participantsG and audienceGs physical and mental tolerance. ow I can
only deal with those elements of the piece that defined a new relationship towards the public
sphere. :ne such momentum is the opening scene of the event, a live metaphor of the
underground3 *amQs (zentEVby dug till his waist into the ground was writing on a typewriter.
*he very fact that the site of the event was a cellar also shows a reflection on the
%underground position&, while the closing action, bundling together the audience and the
participants, stresses the role of the spectators, who were forced to consider themselves as
participants too.
>@
An important factor in event+based art is that with the exception of street actions + it relies
on the special feature of the exhibition space that can serve as a stage that transforms simple
>> Ine Fevers describes the history of exhibition as shifts between an %obEect+and author oriented& model and a
%context+and observer oriented& one. http3CCwww.inegevers.netCcuratorCeven+strategies+in+presentations+>.html
>H 8iwon 'won3 3ne Place After Another: Site7Specific Art and 'ocational Identity. 8I* 9ress, >BBD.
24 :ne important document of the event is actually a secret police report that is now accessible at the website of
cH3 http3CCwww.cH.huCcollectionCtilosC
5
actions to symbolic ones, in a similar way as the presence of an audience. (o the public nature
of these events has a conceptual necessity.
>=
9robably this is why progressive artists did not
give up their intention even in the early IBies to use public spaces and get official permissions
for exhibitions and events they organized. .hile the usual routine was to sneak exhibitions
into the spare rooms of public and semi+public buildings used for other purposes ,offices,
cultural houses, clubs, educational institutions- or galleries that were not supervised so
strictly, there were also attempts to start completely independent new galleries. (o when
FyJrgy FalQntai, a prominent neo+avant+garde artist found a deserted chapel in 4alatonboglQr
,a small holiday resort near lake 4alaton-, he did not start simply to squat in it, but with
youthful optimism first endeavoured to turn it officially into a public gallery and studio.
>I
His
endeavours were only partly successful, still the building housed some of the most important
art events of the time attracting hundreds of visitors and some press attention too. In "#I>, a
year I already used as an example above to show the art+historical asynchrony of international
and %national& art events, *amQs (zentEVby and Fyula 9auer organised the %;irect week& an
exhibition and event series based on a clear %curatorial& concept and call3 %.e can hope to
extend the limits of our possibilities through direct contacts. :ur programme uses such
devices by which direct feedback can obtained, i.e. the audience creates contact with us not
through contemplation but activity.&
>$
*he exhibition included such interactive, discursive
situations targeted at the audience as *amQs (zentEVbyGs %?xpulsion+?xercise, 9unishment+
preventive Autotherapy&,
>#
the artist seated with a bucket on his head and a board with a call
to the audience to ask him questions/ or Fyula 9auerGs %Agitation 9rogram& that consisted of
a tiny lecture hall where he seated the visitors and delivered performative speeches explaining
the works exhibited. 5ew weeks later another noteworthy action happened, entitled
%!esponsibility+*aking Action& by IstvQn Haraszty and FyJrgy FalQntai. *hey stretched a
ribbon across the entrance of the exhibition space and pinned a note on the door+case3 %*oday
N:M open the exhibition&, which was disapproved by the cultural authorities. <isitors had to
25 AndrQs 82llner3 0A magyarorszQgi neoavantgQrd akcionizmus vQzlatos tJrtLnete&, (89ma/ Tanulm:nyo$
a magyar neoavantg:rd $;r8b<l. ?ds.3 9Ql ;erLky, AndrQs 82llner. ,!QciV, >BBD- Information in ?nglish36QszlV
4eke3 *he Hungarian 9erformance. 4efore and After *ibor HaEas.
http3CCwww.zonafestival.roCenCtexteC"Sbeke.htm
26 :therwise the staging or framing effect can be fulfilled by photo or video documentation that again mediates
the event to the public sphere.
27 http3CCwww.artpool.huCboglarC"#==+Cbefore.html
>$ http3CCwww.artpool.huCboglarC"#I>CI>BIB=.html
29 *his work was documented by photos and thus mediated to younger generations of artists as an iconic piece
of the IBies. In >BB@ the artists group 6ittle .arsaw asked *amQs (zentEVby to re+enact the piece so that they can
film it and see how its meaning is changed with HH years passed.
6
bow to be able to cross the %barrier& or had to cut it or tear it down, which a lot of people did
do according to the photo documentation. All these actions show that so called underground
initiations sought direct contact with the public sphere. *hey instigated reflections on the
exhibition space as a public space, and the role of the audiences, the responsibility of the
public. However, they remained to be small models very similar and synchronic with their
western counterparts, but defined by their often threatened, semi+public status and thus too
isolated to be able to make an imprint on the public opinion regarding the social role of art.
In the $Bies the so called postmodern turn, the revival of figurative painting together with a
less rigorous understanding of artGs political responsibility and potentials, and the loosened
state control of culture made the issue of censorship gradually less relevant. ew samizdats
appeared such as the most influential, still existing, 4eszLlW, the political and cultural Eournal,
published from "#$"+ in "@BB copies per issue, and the name and address of the editors
printed on the cover. Actual 6etter, the publication of Artpool also appeared between "#$H+$@,
in HBB+DBB copies reporting on art events, providing a forum for debates, and publishing
important documents from the previous years.
HB
*he periodical relied heavily on the
possibility of tape recording and documented public debates between established art critics
and curators as well as seemingly private conversations between various practitioners of the
art scene, thus creating a very fast and wide reaching circuit between events and the samizdat
press. *his less political but lively art discourse redefined the function of galleries too. :ne
important debate on postmodern happened in "#$>, in a flat studio and gallery
H"
that was
based on a new model, functioning as a collective office that provides management for its
artists in a somewhat similar way as a commercial gallery. Xkos 4irkQs read out a text by
;ouglas ;avis and after he and the audience engaged in a sophisticated debate on the death of
the avant+garde, which was fully recoded and published in the first issue of Actual 6etter. A
year later a group exhibition was organised in a university club entitled the %Avant+garde
;ies&, showing how exhibitions became integrated into the contemporary art discourse being
able to formulate statements in relation to public debates.
H>

Another new phenomenon was the boom of festivals that created a new currency for one night
art events and exhibition. In "#$D a one+week international art festival was organized by
30 http3CCwww.artpool.huCAlCal.html
31 Information on !abinec in ?nglish3 'atalin Aknai + AnikV ?rdWsi3 %7ontemporary Art and the 8arket.& *he
Hungarian Puarterly ,vol. DH. nr. "==. (ummer >BB>.-
32 4ercsLnyi 'lub, ;ecember, "#$H. participants3 !. (wierkiewicz, 8. ?rdLly, F. 4achman, Yertox, 1. 6Lvay,
6. (zilQgyi, Inconnu, et. al.
7
artists and professional cultural manages with experimental music concerts, site+specific
exhibitions and video screenings targeted at the newer generation of youth culture.
HH
It was
generally fashionable that time to Eoin concerts and exhibition openings as it was easier to
evade censorship this way and on the other hand a lot of spaces developed a multidisciplinary
%club& profile. :pen political statements were, however, still prosecuted, as the ban on the
international exhibition involving writers and the figures of the so called %democratic
opposition& entitled %Hungary can be yours International Hungary&
HD
indicates, though with
little force, as the opening event labelled private was still attended by hundreds of people.
At the time of the political transition, all self-organized cltral e!ents ser!ed as
important p"lic forms for the democratic opposition# $riters, %ornalists,
philosophers and artists & as later trned ot - of !er' different ideological !ie$s - for
a fe$ 'ears attended !arios e!ents in the spirit of reinforcing a ne$, democratic
p"lic sphere( )his is ho$ a grop of still ndergradate artists cold get hold of
some empt' estates and start to organize performances, concerts and e*hi"itions,
no$ for the first time $ithot the slightest consideration of political opposition, "t
mch more $ith an idea of instittional criti+e( )he ,%la- grop
35
, $ho rn !arios
independent e*hi"ition spaces for 6 'ears, $as formed in 1989, months "efore the
democratic transition, and 'ears preceding the strctral changes in the most
inflential art instittions( .ring the first t$o 'ears after the political changes of 1989
ne$ commercial galleries opened/ the 0ni!ersit' of 1ine Art changed its leadership
and fonded a ne$ 2ntermedia .epartment "' the pressre of stdent-prising/ the
3tdio of 4ong Artists, the 'oth section of the fine art state administration also
transformed itself into an independent association, and rene$ed its leaders and
operational principles/ and finall' the 5d$ig 6sem, the first msem of
contemporar' art in 7ngar' $as opened( 3o "efore and parallel $ith all these
changes the ,%la- grop created an international profile for an independent artist rn
space,
36
a form for a ne$ generation
37
organicall' follo$ing the tradition of the self-
organized initiati!es of the pre!ios decades( )he' themsel!es also fonded or
33 http3CCwww.artpool.huCmusicCplanum$DSgyetvai.html
34 http3CCwww.artpool.huC7ommonpress@"Cfelhivas.html, http3CCwww.artpool.huC7ommonpress@"Cdefaulte.html,
police report3 http3CCwww.artpool.huC7ommonpress@"Creport.html
35 8embers3 )oltQn XdQm, 'QlmQn Xdam, FQbor 5arkas, *amQs 'omorVczky, AndrQs !avasz, 9Lter (zarka,
and IstvQn (zili. Information in ?nglish3 ?. 4eck3 %Hungary3 After the soft revolution& Art ews, "##B./ A.
)wickl3 %5ive Nears&, (77A 4ulletin, "##"+"##D/ ;. 'ingsley3 %ZElak Froup, *[zoltV u. I>.& Artforum,
"##HC"". http3CCwww.cH.huC\ligalCtkBH.htmlTeng/ http3CCwww.cH.huC\ligalC"#D.htm
36 I have to mention that the members of the ZElak group now are mostly affiliated with commercial galleries
and private collections.
8
rather mediated a tradition, as it coincided $ith their practice $hen the first crator of
the 3tdio 8aller' & the e*hi"ition space of the 3tdio of 4ong Artists - sensed the
possi"ilit' for the first time to inclde an 9ndergrond: genre $ithin the program of a
$ell esta"lished instittion( 1ollo$ing the initiation of ;arna"<s ;encsi- & no$
himself 9instittionalized: as the director of the 5d$ig 6sem - the 3tdio 8aller'
organizes e!er' 'ear from 1991 on the program called 98aller' "' =ight:
38
, a series
of one night e*hi"itions( >hat pre!iosl' $as a necessit' deri!ing from the state
control of the p"lic sphere "ecame, perhaps $ith some nostalgia & a cratorial
concept( And after a fe$ 'ears $hen the sheer charm of these temporal sho$s
!anished themes and international colla"orati!e strctres $ere introdced to the
program pdating it to the most crrent tendencies of crating(
*he motivation for performative and discursive art events was regenerated again at the turn of
the millennium. In the second half of the #Bies the role of the curator conceiving
comprehensive thematic exhibitions was strengthened, however many missed the forums for
criticality and collaboration within the Hungarian art scene. *he artist group 6ittle .arsaw
,AndrQs FQlik and 4Qlint Havas- started to organize weekly one+night one+works exhibitions
entitled the %Artwork of the .eek& in >BB", which were actually talk+shows discussing one
single work every week. *his practice was continued and slightly transformed by a new artist+
curator collective '8'' ,two artists + two curators, !Vza ?l+Hassan, ;Vra Hegyi, 1Qnos
(ugQr, ?mese (2vecz- who staged studio exhibitions and informal professional gatherings
focusing on the blind spots of the art institutions. 5inally, among many other recent examples
of discursive art spaces I have to mention ;inamo
H#
, started as a Eoint proEect of *rafV House
of 7ontemporary Arts ,maintained by the 4udapest city council- and 'aterina (evic. *rafV
still provides artist groups
DB
with a space covering its running costs, so that they can use it as a
platform for various grassroots, self+organized practices to develop their own professional
communities/ while ;inamo got independent from its first location and Eoined a new
collective called Impex
D"
. 9robably this was the first proEect that defined itself explicitly as an
%artist+run space& and that strategically entered an international network of similar
HI Among the artists who exhibited in the ZElak exhibitions were3 F. 4akos, 6. 4aranyai, 8. 7hilf, !. ?l+
Hassan, F. ?rdLlyi, '. 'Qldi, 1. (ugQr, 7s. MglQr.
38 http3CCstudio.cH.huCstudioSgaleriaCgaleriaSenglishCgallSbySnight.html
39 http3CCwww.dinamo.huCenglishCindex.html
40 http3CCreaktor+dinamo.freeblog.huC
41 http3CCwww.impex+info.orgC
9
initiations
D>
, while emphasizing continuity with local traditions, for instance, with their talk
shows discussing current exhibitions.
A lot of these practices and discursive approaches were embraced by high+profile art
institutions or became themselves topics of proEects and exhibitions
DH
. *heir role is still crucial
in the sense that they provide often utopian models for a critical and participatory
understanding of audience opposing the spreading quantitative+consumerist concept.
*he author receives ?rnW 'Qllai Frant from the 8inistry of ?ducation and 7ulture
42 5or example with such programs as the3 ;inamo presents3 D art practices from the region
guests3 >B>B ,!o-, )IFA, 8IHA ,(l-, F:!: ,9l-, 8+city ,9l- http3CCwww.dinamo.huCenglishC>BB@Cregion.html
43 %4udapest 4ox&, >BB>, 6udwig 8useum http3CCwww.cH.huC\ludwigCludwigShSeColdalS>BB>CboxSh.htm/
%sparwasser hq cCo *rafV Fallery getting to know the 4udapest scene& >BB=.
http3CCwww.sparwasserhq.deCindex?F.htm/ %.e are not ducks on a pond, but ships at sea& *rafV Fallery,
>BB$. http3CCwww.impex+info.orgCkacsakB"Seng.html
10