As part of the Látkép 2025 festival, we once again offer space for participants to engage in open, interactive conversations about current issues in the field of art history. The three roundtable discussions approach the profession from different angles: they address the crisis and future of art history education, the theoretical and practical challenges of restoring Art Nouveau architectural heritage, and the close relationship between museum pedagogy and art historical knowledge. The aim of these discussions is to foster dialogue within and beyond the professional community, encouraging long-term reflection and collaboration.
Blind Spot – Art History in Decline
In 2021, the “Is Art History Useless?” section of the Látkép Festival addressed the current challenges faced by the discipline and its professional practice. The call for papers at the time concluded with the question: Why should anyone study art history or become an art historian in Hungary today? Over the past four years, this question has become even more pressing, as the situation has further deteriorated.
It is now equally relevant to ask where and how someone with the intention to study art history might do so. The marginalization of art history education in Hungarian secondary schools does not only threaten the next generation of professionals. It also leads to the erosion of important knowledge and competencies that form an integral part of culture and general education. The lack of professional engagement with the built, visual, and material heritage risks fostering historical blindness and visual illiteracy.
In our roundtable discussion, we will explore these issues and seek to identify the means and possibilities currently available to the art history profession to improve the situation.
Moderator: András Zwickl, art historian, MOME
Participants:
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Emese Révész, art historian, Institute of Art History, Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE)
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Attila Horányi, art historian, MOME
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Ádám Albert, visual artist, Hungarian University of Fine Arts
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Tamás Don, curator, MODEM
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Zsuzska Mészáros, teacher of visual and environmental culture, Fazekas Mihály Primary and Secondary School, Budapest
Theoretical and Practical Issues in the Restoration of Art Nouveau Buildings
Presentation and Roundtable Discussion Organized by the Museum of Applied Arts, Budapest
The main building of the Museum of Applied Arts in Budapest, recognized as a landmark of Hungarian Art Nouveau, has been closed to the public since 2017. Its ongoing reconstruction—and more broadly, the restoration of Art Nouveau architectural heritage—raises unique, style-specific theoretical and practical questions that are rarely addressed in professional discourse.
One of the few notable occasions where such issues were discussed was the international conference Restoring Art Nouveau, organized by the museum in November 2017 within the framework of the Interreg DTP project Preserving and Promoting Art Nouveau Heritage in the Danube Region. Another major event was the 2024 international conference held in Brussels under the title Bringing Art Nouveau Heritage Back to Life: Theory and Practice in Restoration. From the Venice Charter to the Turin Declaration. This event, part of the Art Nouveau as a New EUtopia Creative Europe project (2024–2027), brought together architects, architectural historians, art historians, and conservators to present a wide range of perspectives. The Museum of Applied Arts, as a consortium partner, played a key role in organizing the event.
Several Hungarian experts also contributed to the Brussels conference, and they will now participate in this roundtable at the Látkép Festival. In addition to discussing the reconstruction of the Museum of Applied Arts itself, the session will examine broader theoretical and practical aspects of restoring Art Nouveau buildings.
Moderator: Dr. Júlia Katona, art historian and museologist, Scientific Secretary and Project Leader, Museum of Applied Arts
Participants:
- Tamás Csáki, PhD, art historian, BTM Kiscell Museum, Department of Modern Urban History
- Kornélia Hajtó, ceramics conservator, MNM National Centre for Museology, Department of Conservation and Restoration
- Brigitta Kürtősi, DLA, painting conservator, Hungarian University of Fine Arts, Department of Conservation
- János Mangel, DLA, architect, Vikár & Lukács Architect Studio
- József Sisa, PhD, art historian, HUN-REN RCH Institute of Art History
The Intersections of Art History and Museum Education
This roundtable focuses on the strong interrelations between contemporary museum education practices and academic training in art history. All participants hold degrees in art history, and during their studies, they also encountered the adjacent field of museum education.
In recent years, as a result of several "turns" in the cultural field, museum leaders and professionals have recognized—and increasingly articulated in publications—that dismantling disciplinary boundaries contributes significantly to strengthening the social embeddedness of museums. Today in Hungary, curators, museum educators, community outreach specialists, digital curators, communication professionals, exhibition designers, and audience researchers collaborate more closely than ever before.
More and more museums and exhibition spaces work in interdisciplinary teams—often including external experts—during the exhibition planning phase to identify and shape content that lies latent within artworks and resonates with contemporary audiences. In this collaborative process, museum educators play an increasingly vital role. With a strong command of interpretive methods and their art historical knowledge, they are uniquely positioned to balance knowledge transfer with visitor engagement and experience.
The roundtable will explore questions such as:
- Is it possible to have a high-quality museum education practice without a professionally grounded art historical perspective?
- How does inclusive museum practice inspire contemporary museum education?
- What are the key components of a museum educator’s professional identity?
Moderator: Dr. Kinga German, Associate Professor, art historian
Résztvevők:
- Piroska Földváry – director, art historian, Millennium House – NEO Contemporary Art Space
- András Vereckei – museum educator, art historian, Christian Museum, Esztergom
- Barbara Nagy – museum educator and curator, art historian, Ludwig Museum – Museum of Contemporary Art, Budapest
- Dóra Borsai – museum educator, art historian Hungarian National Museum Public Collections Centre – Museum of Applied Arts
- Eszter Marina – museum educator, art historian Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest