This exhibition features introspective works of art, rich in various details, in which the creator actually takes stock of the stages of his life so far: all this in parallel with the projection of a more considered, harmonious vision of the future.
József Riez was already interested in painting as a child, but only later, thanks to graffiti, did he pick up the brush again. In the middle of the 1990s, he conceived the kind of creation and desire for freedom that could be fulfilled in this socially peripheral and relatively limitless subcultural art movement. This is exactly the outside of society, sometimes subversive nature of graffiti that attracted him (under his artistic name) HOEKand creating in the public square made a completely new level of artistic autonomy accessible to him.
Photos: Réka Hegyháti
By switching to the lower walls, however, it became possible for HOEK to create a more balanced creative process, thereby creating more detailed works.
This was followed by the canvas, which, after the walls and other outdoor surfaces, hid additional new technical possibilities. In this sense, HOEK has "domesticated" himself, keeping his original aspirations (such as free self-expression or transcending technical and stylistic boundaries) and assimilating street art practices with the contemporary fine art tradition. Among other things, Riez presents the most basic human emotions in his latest, six-part study series, which have become the focus of his attention in the recent period as a result of the transformations in his own moral values.
"Time is far from what it seems: it not only moves in one direction, but the future and the past exist simultaneously." —Albert Einstein
Finding and maintaining harmony, unity, love or honesty in our short lives and human relationships is as important to Riez as processing stress, fear or grief and exploring their connection with the individual's personality development. The iconography of 'memento mori' can be interpreted in the history of art from the Middle Ages onward as a reminder of the passing away, while Riez's works exhibited here, on the other hand, can be considered as 'relics of life'.
Photos: Réka Hegyháti
Curator, text: Rebeka Kovács
Two of Riez's paintings have already found owners, but they can be viewed at NaCo until the end of the exhibition 🙂
Nagyházi Contemporary
Opening hours
Mon-Fri 10-18 / Sat 10-14
The exhibition can be visited between 11.01.2023 and 28.01.2023, during the opening hours of the gallery.
