The Kassák Museum: the museum of the Hungarian avant-garde

Abstract

The Kassák Museum is the only site in Hungary which devotes its research to the historical avant-garde. It defines itself as the contemporary museum of the Hungarian avant-garde, and as such, has a broad-based approach to the subject, from the points of view of several academic fields and contemporary art. The Museum addresses the contradictions and tensions that arise when researching and presenting the avant-garde in a museum setting. It simultaneously applies both historical and contemporary viewpoints in presenting its theme. Exhibitions based on historical research also involve the work of contemporary artists, just as the work of contemporary artists exhibited in the Museum reflects on Kassák’s oeuvre and issues of historical modernism and the avant-garde. The Museum examines the issues of the Hungarian avant-garde from an international perspective and through interdisciplinary research.