The name of the foundation calls the personality of an early 20th century Hungarian friend of art.
Since 1994 the foundation has worked for two contemporary art institutions (Budapest Kunsthalle and Ernst Museum) giving scholarships or/and financial assistances to young artists and art historians for their study trips and curatorial or exhibition work, converting into money the legacy of the Balogh family. Since 2007 it only has supported young art historians/postgraduate students of the Institute of Art History, University Eotvos Lorand, Budapest, by organizing different projects and applying for financial assistances.
Ágnes Süle: On the Functions of Floral Decorations in the Houses of Budapest Art Nouveau
Tamás Csáki: The Béla Lajta Virtual Archives – presenting the fragmented documents of an architectural oeuvre on the Internet
During these last years we organized international projects for the university such as the Text and Image in Central European Art of the 19-20th Centuries conference (2009), with its conference book (in English, 2010, Eotvos Publishing House). The participants were invited from the universities of Central Europe and the whole project was sponsored by the Visegrad Fund.
At the same time the foundation is working on its own project about the Hungarian Art Nouveau ornaments. Its goal is both scientific and social i.e. to help PhD students during the period of writing their theses. The work in the year 2010-2011 was helped by the ministry of culture, later on the Hungarian Academy of Arts. By our foundation and by the financial assistance of the HAA and the National Cultural Fund, Budapest became an associate member of the RANN (Réseau Art Nouveau Network, Brussels), and we participated, lectured in its meetings.
The foundation has a board of 5 members: 2 artists (Zsigmond Karolyi and Ildiko Varnagy) of Munkacsy prize and 3 art historians (Maria Molnar, chief editor of the Central European art review Praesens, Orsolya Merhan, editor of the review Műemlékvédelem – Historic monuments’ protection – and the president of the board, dr Katalin Keseru, prof. at the Art History Institute of Eotvos Lorand University). At present we are working on its reshaping with new members: Eva Csenkey, Julia Katona, Zsuzsanna Galamb and Tamas Csaki, art historians of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.