From a tapestry to a Quarter
The Kogart Foundation – diverse activities for contemporary art
MúzeumCafé 9.
It is actually a simple recipe, involving only an idea, an inclination and money – of course, a good idea, a strong inclination and, most importantly, a lot of money. The result is grandiose, exhibitions, which are significant from the perspective of art history, awards supporting young arts graduates and, last but not least, an expanding collection of contemporary Hungarian art. Gábor Kovács has travelled a long way in space, time and ideas from Kakasszék, with its handful of houses at the border of Békés and Csongrád counties. An innkeeper’s son, he passed through primary and grammar school in the town of Orosháza, and eventually obtained a degree with excellence from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations. This was followed by posts with prominent banks in Hungary and London, leading to the top position in Banker Holding, a financial institution he founded in 1989. He also became one of the wealthiest individuals in Hungary. The first work of art he obtained, still owned by Gábor Kovács today, was a large-size tapestry, Aequilibrium by textile artist, Zsuzsa Péreli. Falling in love with it on first sight was a spontaneous matter – yet that moment was followed by many more, which turned into days and weeks as Gábor Kovács pondered how to ‘recycle’ some of the large sums he had earned. He began collecting works of art, though it would be a long journey from the painting he bought purely to decorate his office to his present collection of Hungarian paintings from the 17th to the 20th century, which number over a hundred. Finally the businessman, now clearly ‘infected’ by art, dreamed up the idea of the Kogart Foundation with the aim of supporting contemporary art and establishing a collection of 21st-century works. The foundation’s registered capital of three billion forints was put up by Gábor Kovács (the amount is the highest for any Hungarian private foundation) and for the operation of the ‘new company’ he purchased the former Landauer, later Ohrenstein mansion which, from the early 1960s housed the legendary Young Artists’ Club, the citadel of Hungarian avant-garde. Thus the collection moved to Kogart House at 112 Andrássy Avenue, moreover we can say ‘to the Kogart Quarter’, since it is planned to incorporate the surrounding buildings. Due to a special construction regarding the conditions of foundation, Gábor Kovács could not take his money out, even if he were to wind it up. The three floors of Kogart House have so far accommodated solo, large-scale exhibitions of Hungarian artists such as Zsuzsa Péreli, Tamás Hencze, László Fehér, Tibor Csernus, Béla Kondor, István Harasztÿ, István Szőnyi and László Patay, as well as the most recent, highly popular exhibition of works by Lajos Gulácsy. International stars, including the American Dennis Oppenheim, have also been exhibited here. From time to time Gábor Kovács has displayed items from his own private collection and it was here, too, that the works of art compiled by the Hungarian Foreign Trade Bank were put on public show for the first time. In view of these endeavours, prior to her death writer and psychologist Alain Polcz decided to bequeath the Kogart Foundation the works of art collected with her late husband, writer Miklós Mészöly. Six hundred works of graphic art by Lajos Szalay have also been acquired by the foundation, partly from an estate and partly from the artist’s daughter in America. Kogart’s current large exhibition of these works runs until 22 March. Gábor Kovács is continuing on the journey he commenced years ago. In 2008 he bought a building next to Kogart House, where the Kogart Education Centre has already begun functioning with lectures on art history.