The mural artwork by András Mengyán in the KPMG office
Artworks have an ephemeral nature: they appear during exhibitions or auctions but vanish from public view once purchased. In the latest series by Art Advisory Budapest, we present artworks that have found their permanent place in homes, offices, and collections, inspiring those interested in acquiring art and building collections.
In August 2014, KPMG Hungary moved to the north wing of the Vision Towers office building on Váci street. The unprecedented quality of the building's design and construction was the result of the collaboration of several top firms. In the final phase of the interior design process, the colour graphic concept for the common areas and office spaces was designed by Hungary's leading office design studio, MádiLáncos Studió.
The style of the offices is based on practicality and rational space planning, while reflecting professionalism and elegance. Modern and minimalist spaces are characterised by a subtle use of colour, a rich interplay of shapes and textures, and a harmony of details. The structured architecture of the office building also favours geometric shapes in the interiors; the lighting in the corridors also creates a magical geometric play of light and shadow on the walls.
In the entrance hall, a large-scale mural by András Mengyán, selected by KPMG in an invitation-only contemporary art competition, immediately catches the eye. András Mengyán has designed a work that fits in with the architecture of the building and forms an integral part of it.
The mural artwork by András Mengyán in the KPMG office. Courtesy of Építészfórum
The mural work, which also reflects on the economic activity taking place in the building, is the artist's translation into a visual language of the processes that are part of everyday life, which either intersect with our ideas or go hand in hand with them, but are in constant interaction with each other and induce a constant flow of movement within us.
"The forms of the work move out of the surface, pass through each other, cross each other, go in one direction, appear out of nowhere, break, turn from the positive dimension to the negative." - András Mengyán
In addition to the shapes, the tension of the space is further enhanced by RGB LED light sources that illuminate the shapes from behind and can be programmed as desired. Indirect light is reflected from the surface of the wall behind the shapes and the reflections of light and colour on the shapes create a positive sense of life and atmosphere in the space.
The formal language of geometry is at the heart of András Mengyán's art. His ars poetics revolves around three main themes: the processing of impressions by the artist, which can be understood as reflecting on the specific spatiality of the space, dimension, i.e. increasingly complex levels of visual expansion, and polyphonic visual space, the simultaneous visualisation of things together.
KPMG's office uses geometric detail to create a clean, pleasant, meditative atmosphere, while at the same time encouraging its employees to see things from different perspectives.