Péter Forgács began his studies in sculpture at the Academy of Fine Arts in 1971, but was soon expelled from there for political reasons.From 1978 to 1993 he worked at the Béla Balázs Studio, where he was influenced by the experimental film work of Gábor Bódy. In 1983, together with András Bán, he founded the Private Photography and Film Research Group, later the Foundation and Archive.
After his early experimental films (I see how I look, 1978; Children’s Cinema, 1979; Golden Age, 1985), in 1988 he made the first film in the Private Hungary series, Bartos Family, which has now grown to twenty films. The episodes of Private Hungary are a reassemblage of amateur film footage from the 1930s and 40s, creating a new visual language and a new narrative. Since 1978, he has made more than thirty films.
The exhibition opening at KunstMalom presents new artistic directions and aims, as well as summarising the essence of the artist’s work. Péter Forgács invites us into the labyrinth of artistic expression, to discover through a highly exciting, abstract filter all that may at first glance seem conventional.