Beyond the exhibition, the roots of the Hungarian
contemporary media art evolution were of great interest
to me. How is this vigorous activity motivated? Does it
stem from the experimental film tradition? From
better access possibilities than in the surrounding
countries? Who were the instigators? Miklos Peternak's
extensive knowledge of contemporary Hungarian cultural
history with a specific emphasis on film/video and media
arts helped to reveal the environmental context
of the media revolution.
This article is mostly based on my interviews with
Peternak and Szegedy-Maszak and is intended to
illustrate Hungarian media art developments
through organizational (educational) and
individual artist viewpoints. Of course many others
are involved in the Hungarian media-scene, however
within the framework of this text, it is impossible to
investigate in depth all the contributions.
Peternak primarily credits the Hungarian political,
economical and technical developments at the turn
of the nineteenth century as a significant source for
ensuing growth. The major innovators of this period,
found it very important to create an embracing cultural
context. These initiatives proved to be decisive factors
for the subsequent decades.
In the twenties and thirties, Laszlo Moholy Nagy
and several other Hungarians affiliated with the Bauhaus
contributed greatly with cutting edge innovations to the
art/technology discourse. The hiatus of the war
years were followed in the fifties by a rediscovery of
the "Bauhaus" concepts. On the surface, the themes
between the sixties and the thirties seem distant from
each other, however, through the work of certain
individuals (beneath the turbulent public events)
a continuum is observable. For example, Miklos Erdely,
a leading avant garde multidisciplinary artist - and by
his own admission an "aesthetic catalyst"- whose work
extended to experimental films and videos, revived
particular trends initiated by Lajos Kassak a seminal
figure of the thirties.
In the seventies, the slowly slackening political
structure and the expanding borders contributed
to an opening towards new artistic expressions.
Several artist became interested beyond photography
in new technologies, primarily in film. The Bela Balazs
Studio (BBS) for film has been established as early as 1961.
While this experimental Studio was supposed to serve the
purpose of a well supervised playground for young aspiring
film directors, BBS became more and more open for those
who have not been involved officially in film production,
such as Gabor Body who graduated first from philosophy and
later became an internationally known film and
video maker. Body, producing his first video in 1976 was
the first person in Hungary to work in this medium in
an artistic context. Infermental, Body's annually edited
international video series was widely hailed as "the art
magazine" of the eighties. Collecting and collating the work
of people working in remote global locations, uniquely
bridged the information gap till the new communication
forms appeared.
Art video production started in the early eighties in the
BBS Studio. At this time here has been no foreshadowing
of the communication revolution or networking practices.
"What the web means today - said Peternak - seemed like
a futuristic sci-fi story".
Towards the end of the eighties the wind of political
change was clearly felt, bringing some academic
reforms. At the Academy of Fine Art changes came
about by pressure from the students in the summer
of 1990. As a result of the student's initiatives, the
Academy invited 15 new teachers and simultaneously
established two new faculties, one of them the Intermedia
department survived and is flourishing to this day.
Several fine arts students became involved
and worked enthusiastically in Intermedia The first
graduating class was very strong and the
hyperactivity of those early years sustained the
department over the last decade.
Zoltan Szegedy Maszak was one of those fine art
students who influenced intermedia developments
and whose professional life became influenced
by the changes. Zoltan's interest in computers
dates from his high school days. He started to program
on primitive machines and built installations
-utilizing the very capability of those early tools.
After graduation Szegedy-Maszak was asked to stay on
to teach at the Academy.
The Pararadio audio lab and net radio
established in 1997, remains an active popular forum.
The international residency programs brought well known
artists such as Bill Seaman and emerging artists, such as
Alexei Shulgin, Olia Lialina and JODI - (who became famous
only later on) to Budapest. At the same time residencies
were open to local artists and it is remarkable to note
- said Szegedy-Maszak, current program director of C3 -
that there was no big gap between the work of the local
and the invited artists. The access provided for local artists,
also ensured possibilities for Hungarians to show abroad.
In a few years, the original C3 goals were achieved. Today
institutional access is widely provided in Budapest
and there are many web servers and internet cafes
across the country.
Recently, C3 had to choose between closing the program
or becoming an independent restructured organization.
C3 chose the later and as a consequence the financial
security and support of the operational budget became a
major priority. Support remained available for selected art
projects. Many international connections continue
to operate, including collaboration with the ENKART
network, Ars Electronica, V2 and ZKM.