Join us at Dugattyús for the first event of the OFF Kick-Off series!

May 28, Dugattyús

Get to know the curators selected through the 2027 open call, as well as the participants of the OFF Platform.

Join us in celebrating the return of OFF in 2027 with an evening of introductions, conversations, and music.

Program

17:00–17:10
Opening

Welcome by Hajnalka Somogyi
Introduction by Eszter Babarczy

17:15–18:55
OFF 2027 Platform and Curatorial Projects

The selected participants of the OFF 2027 platform and curatorial open calls will present their projects through a series of engaging talks.

18:55
Closing

Anna Zilahi

Music Program: 19:00–01:00

PHŸLIA (Fanni Szegedi, Dorisz Vogl)
T.E.K. (Tekno Elhárítási Központ)
PULZAR YOOZHI

FB Event

OFF-BIENNÁLE BUDAPEST AT THE TOP OF THE HUNGARIAN POWER 50

COLLECTIVE IMPACT IN THE CONTEMPORARY ART SCENE

We are pleased to share that OFF-Biennále Budapest has been prominently featured in A mű’s 2025 Hungarian Power 50 list, which highlights the leading voices in the Hungarian contemporary art scene. The jury evaluated OFF as an independent curatorial collective and ranked it first in the curators and curatorial collectives category.

This year’s Power 50 introduced a revised approach: instead of a single ranking, it assessed key figures across five categories (institutions and decision-makers; artists; contributors to critical discourse – critics, writers, academics; curators and curatorial collectives; market figures and philanthropists). The nomination process was structured along these categories, making it more visible how certain actors exert influence across multiple areas.

In the case of OFF-Biennále Budapest, nominations came from several categories: some respondents considered it an institution, others a curatorial collective. The editors ultimately consolidated all votes cast for OFF and—taking its self-definition into account—placed it in the curators and curatorial collectives category. Within this field, OFF ranked decisively first.

Several curators who played key roles in the 2025 edition of OFF also appear among the leading figures in the category. Alongside OFF, the highest number of votes went to Lívia Páldi, while Hajnalka Somogyi, Borbála Szalai, and Nikolett Erőss were also among the top-ranked. After combining the votes received for their individual work and their contributions within OFF, they share first place; alongside them, other members of the OFF 2025 curatorial team are also listed: Rita Kálmán, Eszter Lázár, Edit Molnár, Veronika Molnár, Kata Oltai, Borbála Soós, and Katalin Székely.

According to the feedbacks, the 2025 edition of OFF-Biennále Budapest was considered one of the most significant positive developments of the year, demonstrating that an internationally relevant, critically engaged contemporary art event can be realised without institutional backing. OFF-Biennále Budapest was not only a series of exhibitions, but also served as a platform for discourse, bringing social, political, and cultural issues into contemporary art discourse while providing opportunities for numerous artists and curators to present their work.

Overall, the Hungarian Power 50 reflects a dual condition: while the institutional system remains dominant, self-organised and independent initiatives are becoming increasingly influential. In this context, OFF-Biennále Budapest emerges not only as a participant, but as a key shaping force within the contemporary art landscape.

Congratulations to everyone featured on the list!

Curators and curatorial collectives category, Hungarian Power 50, A mű

Read the original article (in Hungarian) HERE.

OFF-Biennale’s latest publication entitled AllinOnePlace–From Participatory Planning to Community Intervention in Public Space is out now!

At the end of January, our AllinOnePlace participatory planning project in public space came to a close. Within the framework of the project, we originally planned to build pavilion structures on Kálvária Square to serve as public meeting spot; however, in the end, they found a permanent home as outdoor classrooms and community spaces in the courtyards of the Burattino School and Children’s Home and the Zugló Waldorf School.

As the conclusion of the one-and-a-half-year project, we have summarized the project’s history and the lessons learned during the twist-filled work process in an online publication available in Hungarian and English. In this publication, we also present a detailed evaluation study prepared at our request by sociologists Mónika Bálint and Dániel Oross, based on interviews conducted with participants and cooperating partners.

You can access the publication HERE.

The AllinOnePlace project was realized in the framework of OFF-Biennale 2025 in collaboration with the Spanish architectural collective Recetas Urbanas, together with local civil organizations and dedicated volunteers.

The inauguration ceremony of AllinOnePlace at Kálvária Square, photo: Zsuzsa Gámán © OFF-Biennale Budapest archive

Authors: Mónika Bálint, Nikolett Erőss Eszter Lázár, Dániel Oross
Editors: Nikolett Erőss, Rita Kálmán, Eszter Lázár
English translation: Dániel Sipos
Hungarian proofreading: Dóra Szekeres
Publication design and layout: Liza Kardos

This publication is supported by

The project has received funding from the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme (CERV). The European Commission’s support for this project does not constitute an endorsement of the contents, which reflect the views only of the project implementers, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

The publication entitled We Cannot Say That We Have Arrived Somewhere, Yet Neither Can We Say That We Haven’t—A Glossary of Commoning Terms is out now

What does it mean to be hospitable, make alliances, or navigate conflict in the sphere of contemporary art? In the past eighteen month five socially and politically engaged, European nonprofit art spaces—La Escocesa (Barcelona), OFF-Biennale Budapest), < rotor > (Graz), Shtatëmbëdhjetë / Foundation 17 (Pristina), and tranzit.cz (Prague)—participated in a joint project and implemented various community-based and participatory programs in their respective cities. In this context OFF-Biennale worked together with civil organisations based in District 8 (Józsefváros), along with their communities and interested residents, to design and build together the community meeting space AllinOne at Kálvária Square.

As a summary of the Art Space Unlimited cooperation project we published a book in six languages containing the terms and glossary entries that worked as guides and reference points for the partners in the process. Instead of such overused concepts as inclusion or participation in the publication We Cannot Say That We Have Arrived Somewhere, Yet Neither Can We Say That We Haven’t—A Glossary of Commoning Terms we reflected on our experiences and dilemmas arising from our own environment and the local context.

The glossary attempts to provide a hands-on and personal overview of experiences in the field of art mediation, and it maps the starting points and pitfalls that organisers of this type of activity face. Using practical examples, readers will learn how to build relationships with communities living in different social and sociocultural environments, how to handle conflict, and how to transform event spaces and programming so that they don’t only meet the needs of the majority and able-bodied population. The glossary is intended primarily for cultural workers, mediators, educators, curators, and artists as well as anyone who asks themselves similar questions and who wants to develop a responsive and mindful public program.

The content of the book is freely accessible for mobile devices, computers, e-readers, and as a sustainable print-at-home download. The texts can be viewed directly on the website www.emotional-labor.eu, and all six language versions (Albanian, Czech, English, German, Hungarian, and Spanish) are also available as a free download in a print-at-home version or as an e-book (for e-readers such as Kindle). Further use of the content is possible under the Creative Commons license.

Art Space Unlimited is a project that emerged from the shared desire and effort of the project partners to open institutions toward people who, for various reasons, have difficult, complicated, disabled, or limited access to art, whether as creators, participants, or viewers. All this while transforming their institutional practice in order to become more empathetic, understanding, and open to people with diverse needs, experiences, and perceptions.

This book was published as part of  the project Art Space Unlimited co-financed by the European Union/European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). The views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the EACEA. Neither the European Union nor the EACEA can be held responsible for them.

Further information about the Art Space Unlimited and AllinOne projects are available here:
https://offbiennale2025.hu/en/kiallitas/allinone/

SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITY

“A safe space is not a sticker. You can’t just call a space “safe” and expect it to be so. A label, a declaration, even the best intentions—none of these guarantee actual safety. And what feels safe to you might not feel safe to me. Safety is not a fixed state; it’s a continuous, negotiated process. During this masterclass, we will critically engage with urgent and complex topics such as safe spaces, trigger warning, hierarchy, authority, separation, distinction, responsibility, and the overuse of buzzwords like “radical empathy” or “politics of care”. We will reintroduce the notion of frame—not as a limitation, but as a structure that protects rather than restricts. A frame sets conditions, creates clarity, and offers a foundation from which risk, experimentation, and transformation can emerge. We will challenge the mainstream discourse of horizontality, questioning how its rhetoric, while often well-intentioned, can paradoxically become an obstacle to the emergence of contemporary leaders. Leadership does not have to mean domination or oppression. We will reimagine it beyond capitalist individualism, seeking new iconographies of leadership and management that are true to our ethics—rooted in sincerity, generosity, and integrity.”

Anna Ádám

The OFF Biennale Budapest, Company Gray Box, and School of Disobedience are offering two fully funded scholarships for an intensive “The Art of Holding Space” Masterclass (2025 May 5-30), designed for artists, makers, creatives, and cultural practitioners seeking to expand their practice into socially engaged art, community facilitation, and interdisciplinary collaboration. Participants will receive comprehensive training, mentorship, and the opportunity to present their collaborative practice or community art work at OFF Biennálé 2025, Hungary’s largest independent contemporary art event. This program is intended for professionals who wish to move beyond individual creation and develop projects that foster collective experiences, participatory methods, and meaningful social impact.

PROGRAM OBJECTIVE

“The Art of Holding Space” Masterclass is designed to equip artists, makers, creatives, and cultural practitioners with the skills, confidence, and strategies necessary to design, implement, and lead participatory projects, transformative experiences, design and hold creative spaces, build communities. 

The program focuses on: 

• Acquiring tools for facilitation, community engagement, and participatory practices 
• Develop your own toolbox with exercises, objects, images 
• Setting a frame, leading a group, and enjoy leading 
• Understanding how to create and hold brave spaces for artistic exploration, critical thinking, and empowerment 
• Developing a participatory art project with active audience engagement (workshops, spaces, multi-sensory experiences, community actions, etc.), testing it in a small group setting, then a bigger group setting within OFF Biennial 2025 
• Extending existing work (pieces, performances) with an educational or community aspect that shifts audience participation from passive to active 
• Receiving individual mentorship Gaining professional visibility through a final presentation at OFF Biennial 2025

PROGRAM STRUCTURE

Week 1: Theory & Discussions

• Critical perspectives on socially engaged art 
• Addressing sensitive topics, taboos, rhetorics, and mainstream discourses 
• Introduction to facilitation methods and radical pedagogies 
• Development of an individual project outline

Week 2: Testing & Piloting

• Conceptualizing a pilot version of the collaborative practice or community project (workshop, experience, space, interactive dispositive…) 
• Testing ideas in a small group setting 
• Refining artistic and theoretical approaches 
• Creating exercises, toolbox, methods

Week 3: Practice & Implementation

• Individual mentorship and hands-on facilitation practice 
• Holding spaces and leading group experiences 
• Key topics: 
  • Creating a frame and making sure it is respected 
  • Differentiation and separation of spaces, roles, functions 
  • Assuming responsibility: finding our leadership style and redefining authority 
  • Discussing copyright and ownership in collective work 
  • Exploring alternative financial models to build and sustain artistic spaces, practices, and communities 
• Evening sessions dedicated to group facilitation

Week 4: Documentation & Follow-Up (Online)

• Archiving and reflective practice
• Planning next steps for project sustainability

SCHEDULE

May 5-30, 2025​ 

WEEK 1 – 1111 Gallery (Kende u. 1) May 5, 6, 8, 9: 10:00–13:00 

WEEK 2 – 1111 Gallery (Kende u. 1) May 12, 13, 15, 16: 17:00–20:00

WEEK 3 – 1111 Gallery (Kende u. 1) May 19, 20, 22, 23: 17:00–20:00

WEEK 4 – Online May 26, 27, 29, 30: This final week, conducted online with daily prompts, offers five days of guidance for documentation, reflection, and connection.

WHO SHOULD APPLY

This program is designed for artists, makers, creatives, and cultural practitioners who are interested in expanding their work into community engagement, facilitation, and interdisciplinary collaboration.

Ideal candidates include:

• Artists looking to integrate community-based approaches into their practice
• Dancers and movement practitioners interested in workshop facilitation and interdisciplinary methodologies
• Cultural workers, educators, and facilitators aiming to develop participatory artistic experiences
• Activists and organizers using art as a tool for social transformation

APPLICATION PROCESS

Applicants must submit the following:

• A short biography outlining their background and experience
• A project description detailing their artistic vision and objectives

Deadline for applications: March 23, 2025
Eligibility: Open to people living and working in Hungary
Scholarship coverage: Full tuition for all four weeks of training (attendance required)
Program language: English

For further information or inquiries, please contact us: