Conservative controls on the Hungarian art scene

Conservative controls on the Hungarian art scene
by Linnea West
Posted on November 25, 2012

Linnea West is a writer and blogger with a passion for the visual arts. Originally from the South, she has most of the past 6 years in New York City. Currently she lives in Budapest, where she is a Fulbright Fellow researching contemporary Hungarian art.

Interesting times here in Hungary, and I mean “interesting” with all the connotations of the unexpressed negative opinion. A conservative government led by Victor Orban recently, after achieving a two-thirds majority in Parliament that effectively gives him carte blanche, pushed through a number of measures intended to centralize the government. In the terms of the arts here in Hungary, this means that:

“Up to now the public funding for several arts and science-related activities and social welfare tasks was distributed through public foundations, some of which amassed considerable assets. They embodied a specific form of professional autonomy and self-governance; boards of trustees consisted of representatives of the art or science concerned, or of experts involved in welfare activity, and the subsidies awarded were decided in line with their professional consciences. Most of the public foundations – 24 in number – have been abolished and their assets and decision-making functions transferred to state authorities.
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