Blinken OSA Archivum
HU OSA 362 Tibor Philipp Collection
BookIconFonds Description
Context
Hierarchy
Statistics
Identity Statement
Title
Tibor Philipp Collection
Identity Statement
Date(s)
1967 - 1989
Identity Statement
Description Level
Fonds
Identity Statement
Extent and medium (processed)
22 Archival boxes, 2.75 linear meters
1 VHS PAL, 0.03 linear meters
1 Digital container, 0.0 linear meters
Context
Name of creator(s)
Group Inconnu
Context
Name of creator(s)
Philipp, Tibor
Context
Archival history
Before being transferred to the Blinken OSA Archives, the materials were preserved by the donor.
Content and structure
Scope and content (abstract)
Tibor Philipp was an active member of the Hungarian democratic opposition movement and the independent artist group Inconnu during the 1980s. This archival collection contains documents and artworks created and collected that are associated with this period. As this artist group's activities were very diverse, the collection is one of the most colorful in the Archives, including art works, traditional textual, audio and photo materials.
Content and structure
Scope and content (narrative)
The Group Inconnu was founded in 1978 in Szolnok. Its name is derived from one of the essential techniques of ‘mail art’, which was invented for the purpose of avoiding censorship: the name of the real recipient was written to the place of the sender, and as the recipient was an unknown (‘inconnu’ in French) person, the letter was returned by the post to the presumed sender. The method helped protect the letter from being opened by the authorities, because it was unlikely that the unknown recipient was an observed person. In the early years, the members of the group were graphic artists Péter Bokros,Tamás Molnár,Mihály Csécsei, Ibolya Morva, Bánk Mészáros, Mihály Sípos and Miklós Kovács, who were later joined by Róbert Pálinkás Szűcs, Tibor Philipp and Magdolna Serfőző, when the center of the activity of the group shifted to the capital. In 1984 they contacted various actors of the Hungarian democratic opposition movement. As a result of police investigations and perquisitions against the group, their activities became increasingly political. In 1985, they had an apartment gallery called Arteria Galeria, where alternative cultural events were organized several times. The incoming entries to one of their most remarkable event, the 1986 The Fighting City exhibition were confiscated by the police in the morning of the day of the opening. From that time onwards, their activities were increasingly linked to the memory of the 1956 Revolution, but their voice could be heard in matters that were well-suited to the agenda of the secondary public discourse of the era. At the time when Károly Grósz visited the United States, a hunger strike was initiated by them against the limitation of their travel rights, and they suggested using the Kossuth Crest as a state emblem of Hungary. They were present at the emergence of other democratic political organizations, mainly in their advertising and design, their graphic works appeared at the protests against the Transylvanian village destruction and against the Gabčíkovo - Nagymaros Barrage System. Their most lasting political work in 1989 was the installation of 300 headstones to commemorate the martyrs of the 1956 Revolution by parcel 301 of the New Public Cemetery in Rákoskeresztúr. The inauguration of this monument was their last major political gesture before the regime change in Hungary. The group then continued to work, but its members no longer represented a common political position. Tibor Philipp joined the group in 1982, and in addition to action art activities he took part in the production and distribution of samizdat publications. Philipp systematically documented the work of the opposition movement. His photographs of the 80's political movements are well known to the general public. During this decade he worked as a carpenter for an illegal construction company founded by Bálint Nagy, a former author of the independent samizdat journal Beszélő. Tibor Philipp was one of the founders of the Hungarian October Party, which, in the spirit of the actionist theater of the 1980s, tried to influence the reforming public sphere with spectacular happenings, including the renaming of streets. He was also in contact with Fidesz (Alliance of Young Democrats), the party's first, orange-free logo was designed by him. After 1989, he retired from public activity. The collection contains documents about Tibor Philipp's activities from the 80's, bringing together a great deal of mixed materials, including photos, graphic works, ephemera, and 20 audio cassettes containing the sound recordings of Inconnu's former samizdat documentary series. The collection consists of seven series, of which the first includes artworks and preparatory materials related to the Group Inconnu. Much of the items were made for different exhibitions, public performances and demonstrations. The second series contains samizdat materials collected by Tibor Philipp, among which - besides the Hungarian ones - some foreign – Polish and German – publications are also included. Being the brother-in-law of György Krassó, founder of the Hungarian October Free Press samizdat publisher, he himself participated in the production and distribution of illegal materials. In addition to many of the more or less well-known publications, preparatory materials, cover plans and used stencil sheets are also part of the series. In the third series, other types of documents of the Hungarian opposition movement are gathered. As these were created in the 1980s, they provide deep insight into the emergence and the activities of democratic organizations, as well as into the events of the cultic alternative venues. The series documents well the history of remarkable opposition groups, including the Bajcsy-Zsilinszky Society, and it also holds materials of organizations that became parties after the regime change (Fidesz, SZDSZ – Alliance of Free Democrats). The series contains mainly open letters, posters, signature sheets and ephemera. The fourth series includes photos and negatives. The vast majority of these were taken at demonstrations and Inconnu events. Most of these photos had already been published. The identifiable authors of the images are Tibor Philipp, István Halas and István Jávor. The fifth series features sound files recorded by the Inconnu. A significant part of the series consists of audio tracks of a series of the video samizdat ‘In Backlight’, recorded in 1988-1989. These materials are not available elsewhere. The sixth series contains documents about the official retaliation to the opposition activities of Tibor Philipp and his associates. Among these there are materials related to forbidden fundraising, rejection of passport applications, and to cases of administrative sanctioning of publishing and distributing unauthorized publications. The seventh series comprises mixed correspondence which also includes lists of packages containing titles of books being posted between Hungary and several foreign (typically London) addresses. In the same series, another list can also be found containing contact details of foreigners and Hungarian dissidents, especially the organizations and journalists who helped opposition activists in Hungary.
Content and structure
Accruals
Not Expected
Conditions of access and use
Conditions governing access
Not Restricted
Conditions of access and use
Conditions governing reproduction
Reproduction is allowed for non commercial purposes.
Description Control
Archivist's note
Processed by Örs Lehel Tari, August 26, 2019.
Description Control
Rules or Conventions
Fonds and series level descriptions are based on ISAD(G): General International Standard Archival Description (Second Edition, 1999) by International Council on Archives.
HU OSA 362 Tibor Philipp Collection
BookIconFonds Description
Context
Hierarchy
Statistics
Identity Statement
Title
Tibor Philipp Collection
Identity Statement
Date(s)
1967 - 1989
Identity Statement
Description Level
Fonds
Identity Statement
Extent and medium (processed)
22 Archival boxes, 2.75 linear meters
1 VHS PAL, 0.03 linear meters
1 Digital container, 0.0 linear meters
Context
Name of creator(s)
Group Inconnu
Context
Name of creator(s)
Philipp, Tibor
Context
Archival history
Before being transferred to the Blinken OSA Archives, the materials were preserved by the donor.
Content and structure
Scope and content (abstract)
Tibor Philipp was an active member of the Hungarian democratic opposition movement and the independent artist group Inconnu during the 1980s. This archival collection contains documents and artworks created and collected that are associated with this period. As this artist group's activities were very diverse, the collection is one of the most colorful in the Archives, including art works, traditional textual, audio and photo materials.
Content and structure
Scope and content (narrative)
The Group Inconnu was founded in 1978 in Szolnok. Its name is derived from one of the essential techniques of ‘mail art’, which was invented for the purpose of avoiding censorship: the name of the real recipient was written to the place of the sender, and as the recipient was an unknown (‘inconnu’ in French) person, the letter was returned by the post to the presumed sender. The method helped protect the letter from being opened by the authorities, because it was unlikely that the unknown recipient was an observed person. In the early years, the members of the group were graphic artists Péter Bokros,Tamás Molnár,Mihály Csécsei, Ibolya Morva, Bánk Mészáros, Mihály Sípos and Miklós Kovács, who were later joined by Róbert Pálinkás Szűcs, Tibor Philipp and Magdolna Serfőző, when the center of the activity of the group shifted to the capital. In 1984 they contacted various actors of the Hungarian democratic opposition movement. As a result of police investigations and perquisitions against the group, their activities became increasingly political. In 1985, they had an apartment gallery called Arteria Galeria, where alternative cultural events were organized several times. The incoming entries to one of their most remarkable event, the 1986 The Fighting City exhibition were confiscated by the police in the morning of the day of the opening. From that time onwards, their activities were increasingly linked to the memory of the 1956 Revolution, but their voice could be heard in matters that were well-suited to the agenda of the secondary public discourse of the era. At the time when Károly Grósz visited the United States, a hunger strike was initiated by them against the limitation of their travel rights, and they suggested using the Kossuth Crest as a state emblem of Hungary. They were present at the emergence of other democratic political organizations, mainly in their advertising and design, their graphic works appeared at the protests against the Transylvanian village destruction and against the Gabčíkovo - Nagymaros Barrage System. Their most lasting political work in 1989 was the installation of 300 headstones to commemorate the martyrs of the 1956 Revolution by parcel 301 of the New Public Cemetery in Rákoskeresztúr. The inauguration of this monument was their last major political gesture before the regime change in Hungary. The group then continued to work, but its members no longer represented a common political position. Tibor Philipp joined the group in 1982, and in addition to action art activities he took part in the production and distribution of samizdat publications. Philipp systematically documented the work of the opposition movement. His photographs of the 80's political movements are well known to the general public. During this decade he worked as a carpenter for an illegal construction company founded by Bálint Nagy, a former author of the independent samizdat journal Beszélő. Tibor Philipp was one of the founders of the Hungarian October Party, which, in the spirit of the actionist theater of the 1980s, tried to influence the reforming public sphere with spectacular happenings, including the renaming of streets. He was also in contact with Fidesz (Alliance of Young Democrats), the party's first, orange-free logo was designed by him. After 1989, he retired from public activity. The collection contains documents about Tibor Philipp's activities from the 80's, bringing together a great deal of mixed materials, including photos, graphic works, ephemera, and 20 audio cassettes containing the sound recordings of Inconnu's former samizdat documentary series. The collection consists of seven series, of which the first includes artworks and preparatory materials related to the Group Inconnu. Much of the items were made for different exhibitions, public performances and demonstrations. The second series contains samizdat materials collected by Tibor Philipp, among which - besides the Hungarian ones - some foreign – Polish and German – publications are also included. Being the brother-in-law of György Krassó, founder of the Hungarian October Free Press samizdat publisher, he himself participated in the production and distribution of illegal materials. In addition to many of the more or less well-known publications, preparatory materials, cover plans and used stencil sheets are also part of the series. In the third series, other types of documents of the Hungarian opposition movement are gathered. As these were created in the 1980s, they provide deep insight into the emergence and the activities of democratic organizations, as well as into the events of the cultic alternative venues. The series documents well the history of remarkable opposition groups, including the Bajcsy-Zsilinszky Society, and it also holds materials of organizations that became parties after the regime change (Fidesz, SZDSZ – Alliance of Free Democrats). The series contains mainly open letters, posters, signature sheets and ephemera. The fourth series includes photos and negatives. The vast majority of these were taken at demonstrations and Inconnu events. Most of these photos had already been published. The identifiable authors of the images are Tibor Philipp, István Halas and István Jávor. The fifth series features sound files recorded by the Inconnu. A significant part of the series consists of audio tracks of a series of the video samizdat ‘In Backlight’, recorded in 1988-1989. These materials are not available elsewhere. The sixth series contains documents about the official retaliation to the opposition activities of Tibor Philipp and his associates. Among these there are materials related to forbidden fundraising, rejection of passport applications, and to cases of administrative sanctioning of publishing and distributing unauthorized publications. The seventh series comprises mixed correspondence which also includes lists of packages containing titles of books being posted between Hungary and several foreign (typically London) addresses. In the same series, another list can also be found containing contact details of foreigners and Hungarian dissidents, especially the organizations and journalists who helped opposition activists in Hungary.
Content and structure
Accruals
Not Expected
Conditions of access and use
Conditions governing access
Not Restricted
Conditions of access and use
Conditions governing reproduction
Reproduction is allowed for non commercial purposes.
Description Control
Archivist's note
Processed by Örs Lehel Tari, August 26, 2019.
Description Control
Rules or Conventions
Fonds and series level descriptions are based on ISAD(G): General International Standard Archival Description (Second Edition, 1999) by International Council on Archives.