Vajda Museum | BARCSAY PRIZE 2021

The history of the Barcsay Prize goes back to 1989, when Erzsébet Barcsay established an award in the name of her brother, iconic Szentendre painter Jenő Barcsay, to support young artists. The Barcsay Grant is awarded by the Hungarian University of Fine Arts to students whose drawing skills make them worthy followers of the master. The Barcsay Prize can be won by diploma-holders under the age of 35. In 2006, Márta and Ferenc Kónya, the heirs to Barcsay’s estate, established the Barcsay Jenő Art Foundation, which now awards the prize. Entries to the Foundation’s competition are judged by a jury composed of members of the Board of Trustees, Kossuth Prize-winning painter János Aknay, Munkácsy Prize-winning painters Péter Bereznai and József Baksai, founder Ferenc Kónya, and art critic and chairman of the Board Balázs Feledy. The entries need not be related to Barcsay’s abstract artistic vision. The chief consideration for the award is to support the career of young, ambitious painters who distinguish themselves with their talent and humility to the creative process.
Selected award-winners of the year 2021 can be seen at an exhibition in Vajda Museum, which opens on 14 January, the 100th anniversary of Jenő Barcsay’s birth.