"The notion of national schools or styles is meaningless"...

...according to Iwona Blazwick, director of London's Whitechapel Gallery.


The earliest relic of Hungarian painting is this 12th century fresco found in the church in Feldebrő


The quote from Ms Blazwick is taken from Sarah Thornton's entertaining and informative book "Seven Days in the Art World".

What does this statement mean in the context of trying to promote artists from a particular country? Do the artists that InterUrbanArt is promoting have anything in common besides Hungarian surnames? Are they bound by an underlying Hungarian sensibility? Does it matter if they are or aren't?

Another point that is raised by Thornton is that "quaint ideas of nationhood are collapsing under the weight of globalization". She is specifically referring to national pavilions at the Venice Biennale, but the thought can certainly be extended to galleries and just about any other business, cultural, or social institution.

Again I wonder---is it true, and if it is, does it matter in the context of promoting a group of artists that are Hungarian (or any other nationality) by heritage?

Would it be any different if InterUrban was promoting a group of Hungarian vocalists (one of whom sang opera, the other jazz, the other rap)...or sportsmen?

For me, the "take-away" from these questions is that first and foremost, InterUrban isn't about promoting the notion of a Hungarian school or style. Rather, we are promoting a group of artists that we believe in, and believe deserve exposure.

We are certainly proud that they have Hungarian heritage, but that is not the fuel that drives our ambition. Rather, the art that they create is the fuel, and their heritage is the spark that lights it.

HAVING SAID THAT

...it is very worthwhile to have a look at Thomas I. Nonn's "Modern Hungarian Painting" on the Kieselbach website:

Thomas I. Nonn

A quote that jumps out:

"it can safely be stated that many Hungarian painters evolved in a modern formalistic direction and that at least a few of them could be considered significant innovators whose life-work in many ways paralleled that of world-renowned Western artists. Yet these Hungarian painters are generally unknown to the Western World"...

And begs the question: why do they, to this day, remain unknown?

ANOTHER BLAZWICK INSIGHT...
(Interestingly, all of these "revelations" come on two pages (242-43) of "Seven Days in the Art World")

Says she of her experience at the 2007 Venice Biennale:

"I walked into the Hungarian pavilion and walked straight out again"..."I thought, 'Six black boxes. I can't be bothered. I haven't got the time.'" Thankfully, she returned to the pavilion, by thirty year old Andras Fogarasi , and discovered that each black box contained a video that was "a very quiet, complex, poetic and funny meditation on the failure of utopia."

2007 Hungarian Pavilion "Culture and Leisure"

I would be very curious to know what inspired Ms Blazwick to return to the pavilion. Did she go back before or after it was announced that the Hungarian Pavilion had won the Golden Lion award for Best National Participation? And just as, or even more curious to know whether the Hungarian pavilion will be on her "must see" list this year. Ultimately, I'm MOST curious if she would consider putting together a show by a Hungarian artist at Whitechapel.

Wishing you a Joyous Festive Season

(c) Reka Reisinger

InterUrbanArt wishes you a peaceful, glorious holiday season in the company of your loved ones -
and for the New Year, everything that you wish for.

While you are relaxing over the holidays (maybe with your new MacBook, iMac, or iPhone), please peruse links to works by two artists that InterUrbanArt will be working with in 2009, in addition to Reka Reisinger, Nandor Losonci and the Budapest Art Factory.

Maximillian Toth

Erika Somogyi

Attila Csörgo takes the prize

Hungarian artist Attila Csörgo, a creator of "visual machines" is the winner of the €25,000 prize awarded by the Kunststiftung NRW, a German cultural foundation created by the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The fourth annual Nam June Paik Award is a juried honor intended "to keep alive the still powerful creative energy of the work of Nam June Paik both in Germany and overseas."

http://www.namjunepaikaward.de/

Attila Csörgö is one of the most prominent contemporary artists practising in Hungary today. His works are immediately entertaining but raise profound questions about how we construct our vision of the world.

Attila works with lights and photography, kinetic structures and changeable geometrical forms. Csörgo presents the reality of systems and phenomena that we normally do not admit. By observing ordinary phenomena under extraordinary conditions, Csörgo creates experiments, often surprising and entertaining, to foreground questions about perception and how we construct our vision of the world. Slanting Water (1995) is Csörgo’s key early work, almost foundational for all his later practice. In this photograph, two glasses filled with water sit on a table. The photograph appears to have been artificially altered, as the water slants in opposite directions in the two glasses. This effect is not an illusion, however; it was created by spinning the table on which the glasses and camera all stood, so that the water was pictured in a centrifuge.

Congratulations, Attila!

Attila Csorgo Official Website

Reka Reisinger at Real Art Ways...Part 2

Artist Talk...Thursday 2 October...6pm

Reka Reisinger's exhibition at Real Art Ways in Hartford, CT will be open until Sunday 12 October.

On Thursday 2 October, she will be giving an Artist Talk at 6pm.

Below are images from the "Second" Opening Night (Thursday 18 September) at Real Art Ways. The "Special Guests" were Reka's cutouts, which proved to be hugely popular among the large crowd gathered for the evening.

Reka Reisinger at Real Art Ways

Reka Reisinger's show at Real Art Ways opened on a picture perfect summer evening in Hartford. Judging by the reactions of the large crowd, the opening was a huge success. Further information about how to get to Real Art Ways, gallery hours, etc. can be found at:

www.realartways.org

The show is open until 12 October. Reka will be giving an Artist Talk on 2 October at 6pm.

Press clippings, comments and reviews regarding the show are here:

www.bigredandshiny.com

www.courant.com

www.americantowns.com

www.flickr.com/photos/meghandahn

www.artslibrary.com

Romania 1-Hungary 0

No, you haven't logged in to the Art is More Important than Football Euro 2008 championship blog by mistake. But while we're on the subject---of the two countries, only Romania is fielding a team in the tournament. To a Hungarian football fan, or perhaps even to a proud Hungarian who isn't a football fan, that's sad news in and of itself. But to a Hungarian Art is More Important than Football enthusiast, the following news is even more disturbing:

There is now a gallery in Chelsea specializing in Romanian contemporary art.

http://www.slaggallery.com/

I of course wish nothing but the best to the founders and artists of the gallery. Simon Watson's eyes are most often very good at spotting the latest trends in art, and bringing a Central European country's art to the NY art world's attention is exactly what InterUrbanArt is striving to do.

My disappointment is simple and unbiased: Romania has beaten Hungary to the prize of establishing an artistic beachhead in New York.

I haven't yet been able to learn how Slag Gallery came to be. If anyone has any information or back story about that, I would be extremely grateful if you can pass it along.

Meanwhile, there is much work to be done to tie this game.

These recent paintings by Zsolt Bodoni are perfect shots straight at the goal, practically unstoppable.

Reka Reisinger at Real Art Ways

InterUrbanArt is very pleased to announce that Reka Reisinger will be displaying her work at Real Art Ways in Hartford, CT this August. The exhibition opens on 21 August and runs through 14 September.

Real Art Ways is one of the leading alternative multi-disciplinary arts organizations in the United States.

Their website can be found here:

http://www.realartways.org