Intellectual innovation and intersections – The Moholy-Nagy Award 2023 is coming up

Date: 2023.11.14
What is the link between Albert László Barabási, Krisztina Passuth, Dieter Rahms, and Pál Frenák? Beyond their outstanding cultural contribution, they are connected by the Moholy-Nagy Award, of which they are the holders along with 14 of their peers. Since 2006, the award is presented each year to an individual whose outstanding artistic, research, or creative activity is founded on the same values as those of the university and its eponym.

In 2006, the university adopted the name of László Moholy-Nagy, and on the initiative of former rector Gábor Kopek, the Moholy-Nagy Award was established. The recognition serves to communicate the still-relevant thoughts and ideals of Moholy-Nagy, one of the leading lights of the Bauhaus movement, to figures in Hungarian and international art and academic scene, setting his ethos as a model for future generations to follow.

The award recipients and the university community are connected through creativity, integrative thinking, intellectual innovation, and responsibility. So who are they after all?

Moholy-Nagy Award winners include archaeologist and art historian Hattula Moholy-Nagy, art philosopher Hannes Böhringer, art historian Krisztina Passuth, curator Karole P. B. Vail, and art historian Olivér Botár. They are also linked by their contribution to raising awareness of the significance of Moholy-Nagy’s oeuvre, and improving understanding of its influence on contemporary culture. This helped preserve the legacy of the university’s eponym, and in turn, build MOME’s intellectual base.

Laureates include several groundbreaking professors previously teaching at MOME’s predecessor, including architect and interior designer István Gergely, music historian Imre Földes, architects Zsófia Csomay and Péter Reimholz, product designers Stefan Lengyel and Ernő Rubik. Throughout their decades-long teaching career they have nurtured generations of designers, enacted education reforms, and made significant contributions to transcending the boundaries of art fields and gaining acceptance for interdisciplinary thinking, as demonstrated by physicist and network researcher Albert-László Barabási, choreographer Pál Frenák, graphic designer Kálmán Tibor, poet and literary translator Ádám Nádasdy, trombonist László Gőz, and director Balázs Kovalik. Their critical and responsible thinking is exemplary for the MOME community.

In 2023, another artist of similar calibre will receive the award – stay tuned for further updates. 

More news

Several students and staff members at Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design recently reached important professional milestones and were warmly welcomed – alongside fellow attendees – at the 2025 Spring Title Award Ceremony by Acting Rector Csaba Kovács and Head of the Doctoral School Ábel Szalontai. This past semester, Bence László Dobos, Viola Fátyol, Henrietta Fiáth, Katalin Glaser, Gergely Hartmann, Flóra Kőszeghy, Piroska Novák, Panni Pais, and Valéria Póczos have earned their doctoral degrees, while Erzsébet Nagy, a long-standing and highly respected member of our textile programme, will receive the honorary title of Master Instructor.

The MOME 2025 graduation visual identity is now complete, offering a visual representation of community-driven future building. At MOME, it’s tradition for the visual identity of the diploma events – from graphic design to the portrait photography of BA and MA graduates – to be designed by students themselves, with the concept chosen through a competition judged by a panel of university staff. The annually revamped visual identity serves as a visual snapshot of its time.

For the first time, the Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design (MOME) is taking part in the Budapest100 event series, which in 2025 will raise awareness about the importance of urban green spaces, gardens, and parks. MOME’s 15,000-square-metre, revitalised campus garden not only serves as a venue but also plays an active role in the festival with its eco-conscious developments and community activities. Budapest100 is an architectural and cultural festival that celebrates communities and the city, bringing neighbours closer together. From 22–25 May 2025, we’ll be focusing on urban green spaces, courtyards, gardens, and green corridors, along with the communities who nurture them.
Member of the European
Network of
Innovative
Higher Education Institutions
9 Zugligeti St,
Budapest, 1121