Interview with Péter Baki Director of the Museum of Hungarian Photography

In collaboration with the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, the Museum of Fine Arts Budapest is featuring a long-awaited, comprehensive photography exhibition of more than 30 Hungarian descent photographers for five months. In the framework of this outstanding exhibition the Liszt Institute New York interviewed Péter Baki, co-curator of the exhibition and Director of the Museum of Hungarian Photography.

Liszt Institute New York: The decision on which museum in Budapest would host the comprehensive exhibition was clear, if we are correct. Although, why Hungary was chosen as the first venue for the collection?

Péter Baki: Alex Nyerges, the American curator of the exhibition and the director of the Virginia Museum, wanted to present the exhibition in Hungary for the first time, which is both an honour and an opportunity for us to refine the public knowledge and publish the research findings on Hungarian photography in Budapest. The exhibition will be shown in two North American exhibitions after the Budapest presentation, but without the images in public and private collections in Hungary, I believe that the Budapest exhibition of 170 images is the richest representation of the period.

LINY: Several prestigious exhibitions abroad have already presented the influence of Hungarian photographers on the universal art of photography. Besides the fact that the present exhibition is the largest ever to showcase Hungarian-American relations, what other important goals did the Museum of Hungarian Photography have in mind?

Péter Baki: The previous photography exhibitions, which dealt with this period and the photographers who had gained fame abroad, all presented images by artists who were already world-famous or at least renowned. The current exhibition also includes a number of lesser-known artists in the history of Hungarian photography, which is an interesting discovery for the Hungarian audience. The presentation of the works of these artists is also remarkable because it makes clear that in many cases we are not talking about less talented artists, but simply about photographers whose individual lives have developed differently.

LINY: How and when did you start working with Alex Nyerges, Director of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts? Which party initiated the collaboration?

Péter Baki: The idea for the exhibition came from Mr. Alex Nyerges, who approached the Director General of the Museum of Fine Arts in Budapest, Mr. László Baán, who is committed to photography and was happy to give us the opportunity to present the exhibition.

LINY: Please tell our readers exactly what role the Museum of Hungarian Photography played in the creation of this very comprehensive exhibition, and what role the three museums involved (Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Museum of Hungarian Photography and Museum of Fine Arts Budapest) played in the creation of the exhibition of 170 works, which is open to the Hungarian public until 25 August this year.

Péter Baki: Of the total of 170 works of art mounted in the exhibition, 76 images came from the collection of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, while the rest of the pieces were borrowed from another 19 public and private collections. The most important of these was the Museum of Hungarian Photography, as we have images related to the subject in Hungary.

LINY: Which national and international museums, or even private collectors, could have collaborated to put together the exhibition of 32 photographers?

Péter Baki: In total, the exhibition material consists of images from 20 lending institutions or private collectors, and many of these institutions have selected some of the world's most prestigious photographic collections. We are particularly pleased that the Museum of Fine Arts has now joined in the presentation of photographic works, as it has been since 2008, and has become a world-class showcase for photography, demonstrating that photography is an integral part of the fine arts.

LINY: Please tell us about the methodology used to select the images included in the exhibition? How did you and Alex Nyerges decide which pictures to exhibit?

Péter Baki: Of course, we decided on each image together, both institutions had their own works and proposals from external partners, and we coordinated them to make the final selection. In the selection process, we took special care to ensure that the works on show were proportionally representative of the importance of the artists presented in the eight sections, and of the order of importance between the different geographical stations. And working with Alex Nyerges was a privilege, I got to know a great colleague during our collaboration.

LINY: When did the public first see the images of Hungarian photographers of Hungarian descent, who are dominating the international market, in Hungary, following the previous prestigious exhibitions abroad? What do you think led to the breakthrough?

Péter Baki: In Hungary, the breakthrough was primarily brought about by the decision of the Museum of Fine Arts Budapest to allow photographic works to be displayed on the walls of the museum from 2008. This was not a risk-free venture, as no one could have known more than 15 years ago how the public would react to photographies on the walls of the most influential museum of fine arts in Hungary. More than 70 000 people visited the exhibition, which needless to say, resolved any doubts.

LINY: After the Museum of Fine Arts Budapest, in which American cities will the exhibition be open to the public? We are sure that our readers will be very interested to know exactly where and when the exhibition will be on display in New York.

Péter Baki: As far as we know, the exhibition will not be shown in New York however, the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and the George Eastman Museum in Rochester are already planning to show it.

LINY: Will you be exhibiting the same pieces each time, or will you be adapting the elements of the art show to different venues?

Péter Baki: Unfortunately, due to logistical and artifact protection reasons, the full set of images cannot be shown in America, which is why I feel that the Budapest exhibition will be the most complete set of images of all the different exhibition variations.

LINY: Founder of the International Center for Photography in New York, Cornell Capa admits that he chose photography as his profession partly because his native language was not understood anywhere else in the world. To what extent do you think that language barriers played a role in the large number of influential Hungarian-born photographers who settled and worked in America during the period known as the short 20th century (1914-1989)?

Péter Baki's answer: Hungary is indeed a nation locked in language, since our literature is difficult to communicate to others. Although, in music and visual arts, especially photography, we can boast many world-famous artists. Of course, we also have to face the fact that the artists who have achieved world fame in photography have all had to leave their homeland and have been able to harness their talents abroad.