The Hungarian National Gallery is the country’s largest public collection tracing the rise and evolution of Hungarian fine arts. Inside its Buda Castle home, visitors can explore permanent and temporary exhibitions, Hungarian- and foreign-language tours, themed programs, family days, festivals, and concerts. Kids get plenty too, from creative clubs and art education sessions to summer camps. February is bursting with tours, workshops, and special events—on-site and online—spotlighting masters like Adolf Fényes (Fényes Adolf) and Lajos Tihanyi, while exploring classic themes such as love stories and the human body.
Adolf Fényes (Fényes Adolf): Silence and Sunlight
On February 10, an online guided tour lets audiences explore the exhibition on Adolf Fényes from home and discover fresh angles on his painting. In person, the Gallery returns to Fényes multiple times: February 15 features a curatorial tour led by Ágnes Horváth, and on February 21 a guided session links his memorial show, The Images of Silence: Adolf Fényes (1867–1945), with related works from the permanent collection. On February 28, the chamber exhibition The Taste of Sunshine gets a curator’s walkthrough by art historian Edit Plesznivy, using emblematic masterpieces from key periods to survey his whole oeuvre while touching on family background, studies, patrons, and classical sources that shaped his art.
Lajos Tihanyi at 140: Rebel Visionary
The Gallery marks the 140th anniversary of Lajos Tihanyi (1885–1938) with a major retrospective, TIHANYI 140, running November 21, 2025, to February 15, 2026. Tihanyi, who lost his hearing in childhood, drew from silence to forge daring colors and forms, crafting an extraordinary visual language without formal academic training. He became a defining member of The Eight (Nyolcak) and one of 20th‑century Hungarian painting’s most original voices. February offers several entries into his world: a Hungarian-language guided tour, Rebellious Forms, Bold Colors – The Art of Lajos Tihanyi, on February 11; a deeper dive on February 12 showcasing key paintings, graphics, and personal objects; and an English-language guided tour on February 13. A musical tour with Ádám Bősze and Gábor Bellák on February 14 traces Budapest, Berlin, and Paris—and the pulsing early decades of the 20th century—through Tihanyi’s lens. Also on February 14, art historian Gergely Barki delivers an encore lecture: Two or None: Doublings and Hiatuses in Lajos Tihanyi’s Oeuvre.
Love Stories in the Galleries
Valentine’s Day comes alive with Love Is in the Air on February 14, a tour through muses, lovers, and artists’ wives, highlighting the greatest and most tragic love stories from the painting and sculpture collections. That same day, The Most Beautiful Hungarian Paintings of Love follows the winding paths of passion and heartbreak through works by Pál Szinyei Merse (Szinyei Merse Pál), János Vaszary (Vaszary János), Róbert Berény (Berény Róbert), and more.
The Body, the Nude, and the Ideal
The human body—especially the nude—threads through art history, changing with eras and ideals. The Gallery’s renewed show Nude Sculptures from the Turn of the Century anchors multiple guided tours. On February 12 and 26, Mama, Look! – The Beauty of the Human Body examines how depictions of the nude reflect each period’s image of the ideal human. On February 19, Look at That, Mom! – The Beauty of the Human Body offers the same theme in English. February 22 brings a focused guided tour of nude sculptures spanning the 19th and 20th centuries.
For Kids, Families, and First-Timers
February 10’s Toddlers – Venetian Carnival whisks little ones to Venice’s grand masked balls and parades: they try roles, spin on a carousel, dance, and finish by crafting an ornate mask. The recurring workshop Color It Anew! – Museum Studio for Kids runs February 11, 18, and 25, time-traveling through paintings, genre scenes, portraits, and old photos to uncover daily life in earlier centuries—what people used, wore, played, and dreamed—then inspiring drawing, painting, comics, and original stories. On February 21, Adventure in the Gallery – Carnival Transformation splits by age: 10:30–11:15 for ages 6–9, then 11:30–12:15 for ages 10–13. February 24 brings Preschoolers in the Gallery – How Colorful!, a first look at how painters worked and what art reveals, capped with hands-on creation in the studio. February 25’s Mental Fitness – Sculpture Brought to Life explores the thrilling mix of nude sculpture, love, and mythology, with a gallery walk through the permanent collection and the renewed turn‑of‑the‑century nude show, followed by a studio session.
Language, Music, and Special Sessions
On February 13, Visita guidata in italiano leads visitors, in Italian, through major masterpieces of Hungarian art from the Middle Ages to today, with special focus on the 19th and 20th centuries—and maybe even a Dante cameo among the canvases. The schedule also includes broader programming: an Authentic Japanese Tea Ceremony on February 19 and 21; the Plum Blossom (Ume) Celebration on February 21 with Judit Várhelyi’s interactive talk on Japanese flower art; and occult-themed lectures, including Occult Sciences Yesterday and Today on February 20, with Dr. Miklós Sárközy on Zoroastrianism.
Ongoing Exhibitions and Finales
The Gallery’s long-runners include The Breathing Light | Spiritism, Theosophy, and Buddhism at the Turn of the 19th–20th Centuries in Hungary (April 30, 2025–March 1, 2026); The Images of Silence: Adolf Fényes (1867–1945) Memorial Exhibition (October 10, 2025–March 15, 2026); and Endre Tót (Tót Endre): Nighttime Visit to the Museum (November 6, 2025–March 1, 2026). February 14 adds a family tour of The Breathing Light and a Valentine’s Day pruning workshop for garden lovers, while February 28 closes with FINISSAGE | Breathing Light. Year-round, the Buda Castle District programs run January 1–December 31, with national days on March 15, August 20, and October 23 also on the horizon.
