József is head of the MOME TechPark graphic design workshop. He has been working with the university since 2013. At first, he worked as a contractor, taking on restoration jobs and fixing the old machinery and tools in the printing press. Later, he started getting more and more requests to print students’ work. At the start of 2019, he was offered the position of head of the graphic design workshop, which he gladly accepted. Getting a workshop going that covered almost all aspects of print media was a great challenge. The workshop is continuously growing, providing students with more and more opportunities to experiment and realise their ideas.
Biography
József finished his studies as press engineer in 1988, at the Ságvári Endre Printing Industry Vocational High School in Budapest.
Between 1988 and 1993 he worked a letterpress engineer, then an offset engineer at the Gradis Nyomda Kft. press in Bicske. His tasks included printing, cutting, mounting, reproduction photography and disc copying.
Between 1993 and 1995 he was an offset engineer at Oláh Nyomda Kft. in Budapest.
Then from 1995 to 2001 he was an offset engineer at Andex Kft. in Budapest.
In 2001 he became lead mechanical engineer at Stora Enso Packaging Kft. in Páty, where he stayed until 2003.
Between 2003 and 2005 he went back to Andex Kft. in Budapest, where he became lead mechanical engineer.
From 2005 to 2016 József was an offset engineer at Oláh printing Kft. in Budapest, where he worked in sequence numbering and punching.
In 2016 he became a letterpress engineer for banknote printing at the Pénzjegynyomda Zrt. press in Budapest. He stayed there until 2019.
He has been manager of the MOME graphic design workshop since 2019.
For many years, he has been collecting items related to the profession, including machines, objects, lettering pieces and tools connected to letter pressing.
In 2013, together with a colleague, he founded the Hollókő artisan press workshop, which is still running today. Visitors can see a press from the 20th century, with the corresponding machinery and tools.
In 2013, MOME asked József to bring the graphic design department’s old press machinery back into working order.
Since 2013, together with his colleague Tamás Novokrescsenszkov and the Hungarian Printers’ Association, they have been “rescuing” other such machines.
They frequently hold presentations on various printing processes, at venues like the Kassák Museum or the Kiscell Museum.
Since 2012, he has been the editor of the magyarnyomdasz.hu website on printing in Hungary.