„Dialogue, not monologue!” The New York School Project is an initiative launched by Krisztina Kovács, Gallery Director of the Várfok Gallery, and Péter Závada, poet and playwright. This program aims to introduce the New York School of poets, visual artists, and musicians to Hungarian and international audiences in Budapest, Hungary, and advocate for the flourishing artistic collaboration that defined the 1950s and 1960s in New York as an effective form of the creative process
The New York School Project, adopting the collaborative strategy between artists and different art fields, seeks to incorporate some of the most significant contemporary poets, artists, and musicians from both Hungary and the U.S. Its ultimate goal is to foster a lively and vibrant international exchange of ideas and values between these two countries.
While Hungarian visual and performance artists were highly active in producing interdisciplinary performances and happenings during the neo-avant-garde scene of the 60s and 70s in Hungary, today, young poets, painters, and musicians rarely cross paths. The New York School Project aims to revive the lifestyle of American artists from the 50s and 60s and apply their strategies to contemporary challenges, presenting it as a form of survival tactic to a broad audience.
Over the next year, The New York School Project plans to facilitate collaborations between young Hungarian and American artists by organizing various international, interdisciplinary events, including art exhibitions, jazz concerts, poetry readings, poems inspired by paintings, live performances of contemporary music pieces inspired by poems or paintings, curator speeches, and art reviews written by poets. Participating artists will have the freedom to create without stylistic restrictions, reflecting on each other’s work, much like the New York School circle did in its heyday.
The activities and events are scheduled to take place in June and July of next year at the Várfok Gallery, one of Hungary’s finest and most important art galleries. Additionally, there are plans to publish a free, bilingual art catalog that will showcase the works of the artists, poets, and musicians contributing to the project. This endeavor aims to foster dynamic cross-pollination of ideas and creativity, encouraging each artistic discipline to reflect on and collaborate with the others.
The New York School Project is on the verge of realizing a comprehensive and intricate project unprecedented in the Hungarian contemporary art scene. They believe this initiative will serve as inspiration for artists, resulting in the birth of innovative artworks. By bringing together exceptional artists from the contemporary art scene, many of whom have gained acclaim despite their young age, the New York School Project expects to attract considerable attention and interest.
Participating artists in the New York School Project include contemporary painters such as Márton Dés, Anna Nemes, Máté Orr and Eszter Anna Tóth. The literary field is represented by poets, writers, and editors who have played pivotal roles in shaping the medium, including Kornélia Deres, Dénes Krusovszky, Márton Simon, Emilia Szűcs Anna, Kinga Tóth, and Péter Závada.
In the spirit of versatility and fusion, contemporary classical music, a genre well-represented in Hungary, is also included. Two young and prominent figures in the field, Máté Balogh and Marcell Dargay, contribute their talents. In the jazz genre, they are joined by Péter Ajtai, Dániel Cseke, Orsolya Juhász, Ádám Mészáros, Szilveszter Miklós, and Ádám Porteleki.
For more information, follow the New York School Project’s Instagram page (@thenewyorkschoolproject) and the Várfok Gallery website to stay updated on the latest developments of the project.