The latest winners of the Stefan Lengyel Scholarship of Excellence have been announced
Out of eighty-one students who reached the second round, forty-three presented their work to the jury, and sixteen winners were selected. The awarded projects cover a variety of topics, including social design, urban revitalisation, and issues affecting the ageing population, showcasing the diverse, interdisciplinary approach taken by the students.
This was the seventh time the scholarship has been awarded, with winners from five different institutes: five from the Media Institute, five from the Design Institute, three from the Institute for Theoretical Studies, two from the Architecture Institute, and one from the Film Industry Knowledge Centre. An exhibition of the projects is set to open in the autumn, offering a glimpse into the concepts the jury found most deserving of further development.
One of the standout projects from the Design Institute is the Spinny sharpener, a developmental tool designed by Anna Kőszeghy to enhance the neurological and motor skills of preschool children aged five to seven, while also fostering collaboration through play. Bernadett Garai’s ZIP pull-out chair-bed addresses the challenges of continuously shrinking living spaces with a focus on durability, repairability, easy transport, and reducing ecological impact. Máté Guthy developed a modular 2-in-1 toothbrush holder and steriliser to promote everyday oral hygiene, while Sára Muszka’s Mercedes Memory Lane is an attempt to link memories and driving experiences, integrating memories into cars. Patrik Sándor Gál’s fashion collection reflects on themes of conflict, contradictions, and the loss of innocence.
At the Institute for Theoretical Studies, Laura Fedics was recognised for her study on the international context of contemporary Hungarian artist Áron Lődi’s work. Fanni Zsófi Baranyi’s research laid the groundwork for revitalising the Church of Our Lady in Sárhatvan, while Gergely Zoltán Áprili explored the unique subcultures of rural football teams through a zine.
Benedek Forgács of the Architecture Institute designed an extension to a residential building in Budapest to convert it into a care home for the elderly. Borbála Véghelyi envisioned multi-generational cultural and educational spaces in a former cemetery and memorial site for American soldiers from World War II, repurposing it for the local community.
The scholarship recipients of the Media Institute also presented a range of exciting projects. Maja Sárdi explored the biophilia hypothesis, while Sára Hecker created portraits and life-history interviews with members of two senior clubs in Budapest, which she compiled into a zine. Csongor Boldizsár Nagy’s video game examined the rise of “cybervoyeurism” – the trend of online snooping. Maja Galántai’s philsophy-inspired retrofuturistic board game concept features players working together to build a road, and Aurél Valentin Bajkov’s project explored the relationship between early photography and AI, reflecting on issues of fake news and falsification of history.
Eszter Enikő Rőczei from the Film Industry Knowledge Centre is making a short film on the connection between mathematics and creativity to mark the 50th anniversary of the Rubik’s Cube and Ernő Rubik’s 80th birthday.
Stefan Lengyel is an internationally renowned designer awarded with thirty professional accolades, and credited with designing the iconic Ganz articulated tram and the Calypso tape recorder. As head of the Department of Design at the University of Essen and MOME, he has become one of the most influential figures in German and Hungarian design. In 2020, the Foundation for Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design launched a scholarship named after him. In addition to delivering a material reward to outstanding talents, the scholarship awarded now for the third time also places major focus on advancing the competences and practical experience of students and on their professional integration.
The list of winners:
Design Institute
Anna Kőszeghy I Spinny
Product Design I BA1 I Supervisors: Pál Koós, Péter Vető, Péter Wunderlich
Patrik Sándor Gál | Loss of Innocence
Textile Design I BA2 I Supervisors: Lilla Cséfalvay, Viola Balázs
Sára Muszka | Mercedes Memory Lane
Interaction Design I MA1 I Supervisors: Péter Molnár, Viktor Horváth
Máté Guthy I UV-SHIELD Toothbrush Sterilizer
Product Design I MA1 I Supervisors: Panni Pais, András Húnfalvi
Bernadett Garai | ZIP Chair-Bed
Product Design I BA2 I Supervisors: András Kerékgyártó
Institute for Theoretical Studies
Laura Fedics | Áron Lődi in a Contemporary Art Context, with Reference to Hal Foster’s The Anti-Aesthetic: Essays on Postmodern Culture (1983)
Design Theory I MA1 I Supervisors: Attila Horányi
Fanni Zsófi Baranyi | Revitalisation of the Church of Our Lady in Sárhatvan
Art and Design Management I MA1 I Supervisors: Kinga German, Gábor Ébli
Gergely Zoltán Áprili | Third Half: Rural Subcultures - Football Teams
Design Culture I BA1 I Supervisors: Gábor Kapitány
Architecture Institute
Borbála Véghelyi | Community Street in Újbuda
Architecture I MA1 I Supervisors: Zsófia Csomay, Balázs Marián
Benedek Forgács | Senior House
Architecture I BA3 I Supervisors:Csaba Kovács, Gergely Barcza
Media Institute
Maja Galántai | Retrofuturistic Board Games
Product Design I BA3 I Supervisors: Béla Hegyi, István Nagy
Csongor Boldizsár Nagy | Game of Voyeurism
Media Design I MA1 I Supervisors: Miklós Erhardt
Sára Hecker | Pearl of the Nile, Human Horde
Photography I MA1 I Supervisors: Anna Fabricius
Maja Sárdi | Biophilia Project
Graphic Design I BA2 I Supervisors: Péter Bence Simon, Attila Ács
Aurél Valentin Bajkov | Fairies at the Bottom of the Garden
Photography I BA2 I Supervisors: Imre Drégely, Krisztina Szalay
Film Industry Knowledge Centre
Eszter Enikő Rőczei | Rubik 50
Animation I BA1 I Supervisors: László Brovinszki