The exhibition focuses on a watercolor series created in recent decades by artist Géza Perneczky, who returned to Hungary after living in Germany for many years. Perneczky is the main character of Hungarian conceptual art; his early conceptual works and publications played a catalytic role in Hungarian neo-avant-garde tendencies.

On the global scene, he became known as one of the founders of the post-flux mail art movement, which also determined the character of his conceptual works. In addition to the works of the 90-year-old artist, visitors will also see examples of the themes and artistic solutions that preoccupied the artists in their late periods in the works of Francisco de Goya, Vincent van Gogh, Camille Corot, Édouard Manet, August Rodin, Toulouse-Lautrec, and Pablo Picasso.

Ageism is a well-known phenomenon of our time, in which the idea that old age is not (just) a difficulty but an opportunity for a different kind of thinking and behavior already appears.

Art history has always liked to consider eras, whether about different creative periods or successive stylistic trends in European art. At the same time, it has always paid much more attention to artists' early years than to the end of their creative careers. Old-age art was considered taboo for a long time, often interpreted as a decline following a mature age. This perception has also been reflected on a broader social level, as modern, Western, urbanized societies still consider youth to be of greater value. Today, however, the "late style" has become an independent concept, and numerous independent research, study volumes, and exhibitions deal with the "late" or "last" works of various artists.

What are the reasons and motivations for an artist’s change of genre and style in his final creative period? This exhibition asks this question and seeks answers by examining the collection’s classic works of art.

The exhibition points out that artists' works in their later years are not belated creations but rather exciting components of their oeuvre. It depends on the individual way of thinking—and not on the generalizing “symptoms” associated with old age—whether the late works are striking finales to an oeuvre, dynamic restarts of a creative journey, or perhaps the liberated, risk-free, joyous crowning of a career rich in meaning.

Location of the exhibition: Museum of Fine Arts
Ground Floor, Prints and Drawings - 8 May 2025 – 28 September 2025