AFTERGLOW. Photo-Fluorescent Reverberations
At the heart of Afterglow lies light and its ephemeral yet enduring manifestations: the traces it leaves on surfaces, reflections, afterimages, and the radiance that persists even after its source has disappeared. Presented in conjunction with the 30th anniversary of the International Kepes Society (IKS) and its Light Symposium, the exhibition explores light through the work of artists, scientists, researchers and educators, approaching it as a physical phenomenon, an artistic medium and a means of inquiry. Members of the International Kepes Society and invited artists engage with light through a wide range of analogue and digital processes, kinetic works and experimental practices. Their works present light not merely as a condition of visibility, but as an autonomous artistic medium and a formative force that shapes our visual experience. By bringing the historical traditions of light-based art into conversation with contemporary experimentation, the exhibition reveals how our understanding of light, vision, imagination and visual experience continues to evolve. The works on view span a broad spectrum of artistic approaches, from the optical illusions of holography and lenticular lenses to installations that transform our experience of movement and geometric form, encompassing along the way the interplay of light, sound and water. Other works confront viewers with the direct stimulation of the retina and the physiological phenomenon of afterimages. Phenomena drawn from quantum physics, cosmology, astrophysics and the study of sunlight are likewise translated into sensory and spatial experiences. At the same time, several works address the social and political dimensions of collective life, examining the possibilities of collective agency, the mechanisms of decision-making, structures of power and patterns of human movement. Despite their diverse approaches, the works share a set of underlying concerns. How does light shape space and perception? Where does the boundary lie between the external world and our embodied experience of it? How can scientific insight become a sensory experience, and intellectual inquiry an aesthetic encounter? Rather than offering definitive answers, the works open up fresh perspectives on the relationship between art and science. The title Afterglow evokes the lingering radiance that remains after a light source has vanished, while also carrying a broader significance. It speaks to ideas, discoveries and experiments that outlive their own time, continuing to resonate in the present and illuminating connections that might otherwise remain unseen. The exhibition pays tribute to this intellectual and artistic legacy by recalling the work of artists, thinkers and researchers who have enriched the relationship between art and science through the interplay of different disciplines, artistic practices and technological possibilities.
Afterglow was first presented in an initial iteration at the Gales Gallery at York University in Toronto in February 2025, accompanied by an international symposium bringing together artists and art theorists. Developed to mark the 30th anniversary of the International Kepes Society, the Budapest exhibition extends this legacy through a new constellation of contemporary works and ideas, offering fresh perspectives on the relationship between art, science and technology.
The exhibition draws on research supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
exhibiting artists:
Raphael ARAR • Albert László BARABÁSI • Gáspár BATTHA • Bálint BOLYGÓ • László Zsolt BORDOS • András BÖRÖCZ • Shawn BRIXEY • Attila CSÁJI • Éva B. CSONKA • Áron DOHNÁL • Pascal DOMBIS • FLUXLIAN (Martin FLUGELMAN OLMEDA, Axel ROTHBART, Lisandro GALVÁN) • Jan Daniel FRITZ • Alexander GYENES • Zsolt GYENES • Erzsébet HORVÁTH • Mihály G. HORVÁTH • Dieter JUNG • Antal KELLE Artformer • Klára KUCHTA • Flóra B. LABORCZ • Willie LA METRA • Joanie LEMERCIER • Renáta LISZI • Adrien LUCCA • Hrysovalanti MAHERAS • Erik MÁTRAI • András MENGYÁN • Antoni MUNTADAS • András NAGY • NAGYMOLNÁR (Csaba MOLNÁR, Krisztián NAGY) • Ákos NEMCSICS • Joel ONG & MSI Lab • Pietro PIRELLI • Ferenc PÓCSY • David ROKEBY • Robert SEIDEL • Bettina SCHUELKE • Robert SOCHACKI • Gábor Csongor SZIGETI • London TSAI • Tamiko THIEL • Gabey TJON A THAM • Vinzenz AUBRY • Elaine WHITTAKER
The exhibition forms part of the anniversary Light Symposium celebrating the 30th anniversary of the International Kepes Society, organised by the Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design (MOME), the Vasarely Museum, the Hegyvidék Gallery, the Dr Eva Kahan Foundation – Kahan Art Space Buda, the Budapest Art Factory, the Institute for Art Theory and Methodology of the Hungarian Academy of Arts, and the Hungarian Academy of Sciences.
AFTERGLOW. Photo-Fluorescent Reverberations
at the 30th Anniversary of the International Kepes Society
curators: Nina Czegledy, Joel Ong, Márton Orosz
opening address by Oliver A. I. Botar, Head of Department and Art Historian (University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada)
5–6 NOVEMBER 2026
opening: 5 November 2026, 7 pm
closing event: 6 November 2026, 7 pm
KAHAN ART SPACE BUDA | 4 GYAPOT STREET, 1116 BUDAPEST
further information: https://www.kepessociety.org
