Walls are erected when a sense of insecurity takes hold—between nations, peoples, and cultures, both externally and within. Brick by brick, decree by decree, word by word, they rise—obstructing oversight, empathy, and understanding.
Open and associative yet tangible and specific, the exhibition these walls... (1) brings together a diverse array of artistic practices that explore the Biennale’s key themes: safety and security. Though loosely connected, the selected works speak to and through one another, their varied—and at times conflicting—voices coexisting in dialogue. Informed by distinct human, cultural, and political experiences across geographies and historical moments, these perspectives intersect and challenge binary thinking, rising fascist ideologies, and patriarchal worldviews. They confront both literal and metaphorical walls that shape our contemporary reality.
The exhibition’s title is drawn from a poem by Rebeka Kupihár, whose writing reflects the friction and fragility of everyday life. As a young, non-heteronormative woman navigating Hungary’s political and social climate—marked by right-wing backlash, propaganda, discrimination, economic disparity, and worsening environmental and healthcare conditions—Kupihár moves through both real and imagined borders. Yet her gaze remains steady, her voice free of judgment. She meets the world with close attention, and embraces joy, sensuality, and freedom amid adversity.
In this spirit, the exhibition—presented at the newly opened Merlin as part of OFF-Biennale Budapest—threads together nuanced reflections on both individual and collective experiences. It acknowledges hardship, but also resilience. Through a poetic sensibility and a commitment to in-person connection, the works offer responses to violence that resist fear and division. Rather than reinforcing the walls that separate us, they envision new ways to find safety—through tenderness, empathy, patience, and shared humanity.
(1) Extract from the poem tourists by the poet Rebeka Kupihár. English translation by Anna Bentley: https://konyvesmagazin.hu/panodyssey_cikkek/kupihar_rebeka_forditas.html
Curators: Rita Kálmán, Eszter Lázár, Edit Molnár, Veronika Molnár, Lívia Páldi, Hajnalka Somogyi, Borbála Soós, Katalin Székely
Venue: Merlin, Károly krt. / Town Hall Park (District 5)
Opening: May 8, 19.00
Open: May 9 – June 15, Wednesday: 16.00–19:00, Thursday–Friday: 16.00–20.00, Saturday–Sunday: 10:00–16:00
Supported by: The Sigrid Rausing Trust, Foundation for Arts Initiatives, ERSTE Foundation, OFF Circle of Friends, Green Cloud Platform Zrt., Silkem Hungary Kft., Concorde, Maurice Ward Art Handling, Between Bridges, Nordconn International, Minister of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland from the Culture Promotion Fund, Adam Mickiewicz Institute, Federal Ministry Republic of Austria - Arts, Culture, the Civil Service and Sports, Culture Ireland, Goethe-Institut Budapest, British Council Hungary, French Institute Budapest, Polish Institute Budapest, Austrian Cultural Forum Budapest, Ukrainian Institute, University of Bergen Faculty of Art, Music and Design, Embassy of Sweden, EVA International, Judit Reszegi
