Gabor DEMSZKY, Mayor of City of Budapest:

There is a photographer here, with us, who is half American and a half Hungarian or – probably – completely Hungarian. Who is spite of this is looking at the world as a Central-European and as a cosmopolitan, and he possesses the technical skill to show us what he can see. Being a practicing photographer myself I dare to say that to see and to show are two different things. As to what does Tamás RÉVÉSZ want to show? As he worded it, he tries to grasp and to reflect the so-called genius loci, namely the spirit of the place. Many say that his photos are shocking. I would rather say that his photos are shocking because they are spontaneous, witty and timeless, because he presents even the ugly as being beautiful. And with doing so, he is completely in opposition with the fashionable trends which try to make ugly even the beautiful.

The photos of RÉVÉSZ are not prudish. In stead, they are poetic and show beyond themselves. Tamás RÉVÉSZ turns to people and landscapes with childish curiosity, and he stares with childish innocence on his subjects. As if he were not taking photos, but were painting with his camera. In this case in black and white, while facilitating for us to get acquainted with the shades as well, including the good, the bad, the perfect and the imperfect. Seemingly, he has no purpose at all. As if he did not intend to save the world, only to describe. To describe in a specific manner, á la RÉVÉSZ. He is usually compared to others, to other famous Hungarian photographers. In reality, he has a lot in common with André Kertész, Robert and Cornell Capa and Brassai. Still he is different, as his “fingerprints” make different from anyone else.

I am familiar with his photos of Budapest, and also with his album devoted to New York. I am convinced that when he photographs the different cities, he adapts the personality of the cities in question, pulls that on him as a helmet, and he comes out of the helmet only after he had learnt all its secrets.

Budapest is also united with him, and so is New York. He feels at home here and there as well. This dual vision improves his art.

Tamás RÉVÉSZ says that he has always defined impossible missions for himself. One of these “missions impossible” was, when in the 1970s, he made socio-photos, as I also did. The material of his album “Farewell to the Gypsy/Roma settlements” I feel to be my close relatives. In this case, the impossible was called social sensibility and bravery.

With these thought, I am opening the exhibition.

A critically acclaimed international traveling photography exhibition titled “New York” opened at the Kogart House, Budapest on March 17–May 14, 2006. The exhibition featured the work of Tamas Revesz, a Pulitzer Prize winning photographer and comprised 62 black and white photographs.

Arpad Goncz, former President of Hungary and the patron of the exhibition, provided the opening address. The exhibition was introduced by Dr. Gabor Demszky, Mayor of Budapest and George H. Walker, U.S. Ambassador to Hungary.

Michael R. Bloomberg, Mayor of the City of New York wrote for the opening: "...Life in New York City is often a wonderful blur of action and energy. However, in the midst of so much movement, there are an infinite number of discrete moments that are best appreciated on their own, frozen in time. As this exhibition proves, Tamas Revesz has a special gift for recognizing and capturing these telling scenes..."

The exhibition was organized and presented by the Kovács Gábor Art Foundation (KOGART) in cooperation with the Cultural Exchange Foundation of Washington D.C.

Jim Mairs, editor of Revesz’ New York photo book at the W.W. Norton publishing house in New York, said, “These are some of the most beguiling and intriguing photographs of New York City ever taken. With a photographic eye not unlike his fellow countryman, Andre Kertesz, Revesz captures the essence of the city in an often surprising way.”

Nancy Soderberg, President of the Sister City Program of the City of New York, has offered support and praise for Tamas Revesz and his “New York” photo exhibition as a Sister City project. She said “Mr. Revesz’ photography reveals new perspectives on New York City to the people of Budapest and offers further cultural understanding between New York City and her Sister Cities.

Following Budapest, the exhibition will travel over the next years to the other New York Sister Cities – Beijing, Cairo, Jerusalem, Johannesburg, London, Madrid, Rome and Santo Domingo.

ABOUT THE EXHIBITION

CONTENTS

• 62 photographs – archival black and white, Piezography prints, reproduced on 100% cotton rag, acid-free Hahnemuhle paper, numbered limited editions, matted and framed

• 38 horizontal frames: 25 x 21 inch (63.75 x 53.55 cm)
• 24 vertical frames: 20 x 26 inch (51 x 66.3 cm)

ORGANIZERS OF THE BUDAPEST SHOW

KOGART

Since April 2004 KOGART has arranged several individual, group and thematic contemporary fine art exhibitions in which photography has become very important. KOGART has endeavored to introduce internationally recognized and prominent works, and as a result of their audience-centered mission, these exhibitions have become remarkably successful. More than 40.000 visitors have attended the exhibitions in the last year and a half. The KOGART House can be an excellent venue in which sponsors can hold their own special events, conferences, meetings, private tours, or to entertain their guests. The House could also host special concerts and the integral screening room is ideal for a “mini-festival” presentation of archival material about New York City.

CULTURAL EXCHANGE FOUNDATION, USA

Cultural Exchange Foundation is a not-for-profit organization with 501(c)(3) IRS status based in Washington, D. C. The Foundation fosters artistic and creative exchanges between different cultures. Hungarian-born Anita Semjen is the founder and executive director of the Foundation.
She has organized and produced international art exhibitions, films, concerts, performances, and seminars in the United States, Europe and Israel. \Semjen’s honors and special recognition include a formal citation in the U.S. Congressional Record, top prizes at several international film festivals and Hungary’s highest award for outstanding achievement in the arts and humanities. Cultural Exchange Foundation has presented several international art exhibitions in Hungary. The first major exhibition, “Hungary: Before and After” was held at the Kiscelli Museum in 1993, followed by “Victims and Perpetrators” at the Budapest Jewish Museum in 1995. “Writers’ Block,” a major art installation, was presented in 2002.

SISTER CITY PROGRAM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, USA

The Sister City Program of the City of New York, Inc. is rooted in the Washington, D.C. based Sister Cities International Program (SCI). SCI is the world’s premier citizen diplomacy network. It is based on President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s “people to people” approach to improving international relations. The SCI policy that requires cities to seek relationships with other cities of similar attributes further enhances the cross-cultural impact. As one of the world’s leading urban centers, and host to the United Nations and the world’s largest diplomatic community, New York City has engaged in successful Sister City relationships in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Central America since 1960. The Program is committed to developing and nurturing effective and sustainable partnerships between the City of New York and her ten sisters throughout the world.

CONTACTS

KOGART: www.kogart.hu
Cultural Exchange Foundation: www.cef-us.org/home.htm
Anita Semjen Executive Director 6900 Seven Locks Road
Cabin John, MD 20818 USA Tel: +1-301-320-7995 Fax:+1-301-320-8091 Asemjen@gmail.com
Tamas Revesz: tamas.revesz@gmail.com

PURCHASE OF PHOTOGRAPHS

To purchase limited edition New York Piezography prints contact Tamás Révész