Péter Forgács

10 September 1950. Media artist and scientist live and work in Budapest. Studies at Academy of Fine Art, Budapest 1971/72. & 1974/77. Graduates in 1977. In the early seventies' Forgács works influenced by the Hungarian fluxus & concept art movement and various experimental theatre & filmmakers. Péter Forgács established the Private Film & Photo Archives Foundation 1983, Budapest, a collection of amateur films & snapshots of the 20th. Century Hungary, for culture & art studies. Researcher at the Hungarian Sociological Institute of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, on the ‘Private Film and Photo Research Project.’ As an independent film and video artist, Forgács begun in the Béla Balázs Film Studio (1978) Created his first 16 mm. film "Children Movie." and AKAI video tape the „I see that I look.” in 1978. From the eighties Forgács exhibits video performances like „Inauguration” (1980) or „Dixie & Pixie” (1983) and video installations:

The "Totem" (Kapolcs, Hungary,1993, Amsterdam Nederland Film Museum, Holland;
"The Case of My Room" video installation, Newcastle, Laing Art Gallery, U K, (1992),
“Two Nests” French Cultural Institute, Budapest. (1992),
The "Hungarian Video Kitchen Art" (at the SUB VOCE, Budapest 1991, & 10th W. W. Video Festival, The Hague, Holland, 1992).
The „Inventory” one man show at Kiscell, the Budapest Municipal Museum 1995
The „Pre Morgue” installation at ‘Butterfly Effect’ 1996, Budapest.
The ‘Hungarian TOTEM’ video installation was exhibited in Tokyo, Shiseido Gallery (1996) and at the 1996 Sao Paolo Biennial.
The „Dream Inventory” has been presented as part of the „Beyond Art and Science” Austro- Hungarian Exhibition at Ludwig Museum, Budapest, 1996 and at Graz, Landes Museum 1997.

Scholarships, lectures, presentations:

1987
scholarship and exhibition (Partenope) Rome, Hungarian Academy.

1990/91
Associate professor of University of California, Central European Studies Budapest.

1993
In collaboration with poet György Petri & graphics artist György Galántai, created the book, „Petrified for East" (1990) at the School of Art Visiting Artist Program, at ASU, Tempe, USA.

1994.
Lectures in Netherlands Film Museum Amsterdam „Teens Doc.” Conference

1995.
“Wittgenstein Tractatus” Lecture and performance at the Netherlands Film Museum Amsterdam

1995.
Lectures & presentations. Museum of Modern Art, MOMA, New York.

1995.
Lectures and presentations. Chicago Art Institute, School of the Art.

1995.
Lectures & public presentations. Berkeley University and at the Pacific Film Archive.

1996
‘Tractatus’ lecture. KAO University, Tokyo.
Presentation at INPUT 96 Guadalajara, Mexico

1996.
Lecture at RAI-EUROVISIONI conference on Hungarian Documentaries, Naples

.1997
“Documentaries and History” Seminar at IDFA Conference, Amsterdam
Lecture at the ROME EUROVISIONI conference “Creative Documentaries and New Technologies”

1998
CalArts, Los Angeles,
Visiting Artist presentations, and lecture Presentation at INPUT Stuttgart,
Flaherty Film Seminar NY, USA
Past as Present (on Amateur Film) conference, Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles

1999
lectures and film presentation, KIASMA, CONTEMPORARY ART MUSEUM, Helsinki

1993
"Wittgenstein Tractatus" video /1992/ 32'
Grand Prix Wroclaw Poland, Sound Base Arts Video Festival;

1993
Video Grand Prix Lucerne Switzerland: VIPER Film & Video Festival

1993
Film & Video Festival Strasbourg Video Les Beaux Jours Prix

1993
"Culture Shavings" Prix St. Germaine de Geneva video, 43
Hungarian title: Kultúr forgácsok. Geneva, Switzerland, 5e Semaine Internationale de Video, 1993

1993
"Márai :Herbal" (FMS MTV) 30’ Hungarian title: Márai Füveskönyv
2nd Prize Berlin Sport and Young film Festival

1992
Prix Menzione di Merito . FILM FESTIVAL Salerno, Italy, 45,

1991
"Dusi and Jenõ" (1989, BBS / FMS ) video 45,’ Hungarian title: Dusi és Jenõ
Marseilles, France, 2nd "European Document Film. Biennial" Grand Prix

1990
"The Bartos Family "(1988) 61' Hungarian title: A Bartos család
World Wide Video Festival, Grand Prix The Hague, Holland

1992
Hungarian Film Critics Prize
The Best Hungarian Documentary Film: "Private Hungary" series

1993
“Notes of a Lady” Hungarian title: Egy úrinő notesza
(BBS / FMS- Private Hungary 8) Montecattini Italy 45. MOSTRA INTERNAZIONALE DI CINEMA
Prix "CASSA DI RISPARAMO DI FIRENZE"

1995
„Meanwhile Somewhere” Hungarian title: Miközben valahol
“Lattücht” Prize DokumentART 95 Festival, Neubrandenburg, Germany,

1996
Honor Knight Cross of the Hungarian Republic,

1997
„Free Fall” Hungarian title “Az örvény…Budapest, 28th Hungarian Film Week,
SHORT & EXPERIMENTAL FILM PRIZE

1997
„Free Fall” Marseilles, International Document Film Festival ‘vue sur le docs’
GRAND PRIX & CNC “Image de la culture” special award

1997
„Free Fall Berlin, PRIX EUROPA Grand Prize” Non-Fiction Program of the year

1997
„Free Fall” Leipzig, International Film Festival, , FIPRESCI Prize

1998
„Free Fall” Hungarian Film Critics Prize
"The Best Hungarian Documentary-Fiction, and the Best Film Music of the year 1997”

1998
The Balázs Béla Prize of the Hungarian Republic

1999
The Danube Exodus” Documentary Film Grand Prix 30th Hungarian Film WEEK
Krakow Int. Doc. & Short Film Festival, Silver Dragon prix and FIPRESCI prize,

1999
“The Maelstrom” Jerusalem International Film Festival,
the MAYOR’S “Jewish Experience Prize” for best documentary film

Forgács Péter Selected Bibliography

Josef Woodard: "Hitting Home" (Private Hungary) in: Santa Barbara Independent 26/03/92

Robert Fischer: "Suche Nach den...." in: Neue Zürcher Zeitung 12/10/90

Jerome Mallien: "»Wittgenstein« Sourire á l’objectif" in: Derniere Nouvelles d’Alsac 23/03/93

Jerome Mallien: „Forgács, la colére froide du concept” Derniere Nouvelles d’Alsac 05/04/95

György Spíró: "Midnight or A Couple from the Attila Street" in Népszabadság (Budapest) 28/04/91

Annick Péignégiuly: "Cine-journal d’une famille hongroise" in: Liberation 27/10/91

Miklós Peternák: „Private Hungary” in: Belvedere (Budapest) 1991/1

Pieter Bogaert: "Interlude Leven is Ijdelheid" in: Andere Sinema 1992/06

Mieke Bernink: "De Tragiek van de Tijd" in: Screen 1990/54

Laurence Follea: "Images d’Amateurs" in: Le Monde 1991/10/28

Kees Hogenbirk Private Hungary in. DIURANA Amsterdam 1993/3

Albert Wulffers: "Het Spel der Vergissen" Nederland Film Museum in: Themareeks/20 1993/10

István Hajdu: „Exhibitionism in the Indiference of God” in: Balkon (Budapest) 1994/10

J. R. „Nazi-troepen in de stad” in: NRC Handelsblatt (Amsterdam)10/11/93

Anne-Marij Merhottein “Er was ens… “ Private Hungary. PHD at Film & TV Faculty Amsterdam Univ. 1996

Raymond van den Boogard “Allemaal deschuld van de CIA” in NRC Handelsblatt (Amsterdam) 27/06/1997

Hulb Stam “Nederladndse films in trek op IDFA” in: Volksrkrant (Amsterdam) 01/12/1997

Vera Najgenova “Budapest Festival ‘97” in: KINO (Moszkva) February/1997

Paolo Vecchi “Budapest: Produzione In Ripresa” in: L’Unita (Roma) 1997 02 16

Christian Iseli Visualised Memories in: DOX /Denmark-Switzerland/ August 1997

Miklós Peternák “INSTALLATIONSHAVINGS”

Kiscell Municipal Museum exhibition catalogue (Budapest) 1995

Katalin Néray “Between Actualities and Utopias in Central Europe” Shiseido Catalogue Tokyo 1996

Hirishi Minamishima “Christ in a Sock” Shiseido Exhibition Catalogue, Tokyo 1996

Gerjan Zuilhof …”FREE FALL” 26th IFFR Catalogue Rotterdam, 1997

Erkki Huttamo Historaa kotislokuvan välitykselä. in: Kaleva 02/22/97 Finland

László F Földényi Analytic Spaces – Installation’s of Péter Forgács in: Hungarian Lettre International /29

Antonia Naim FREE FALL in. Il Manifesto 23/09/1998

Catherine Bangonnet FEE FALL in. Images documentaires n°28

Kenneth Turan ‘The Most Personal Filmmakers’ in: Los Angeles Times. 1 December 1998,

F. László Földényi. ‘Historical Therapy in Film’ in: Metropolis, 1999 summer

András Forgách ‘The Destruction of Closed Gardens’ in: Metropolis, 1999 summer.