Dear Reader,
With a past of over four decades behind it, the Medal Biennial of Sopron has always been awaited by the public with eager curiosity. The two-yearly high-profile event is a pageant of the top echelon of Hungarian medal artists who often enrich the palette of this artistic medium with brand-new, ground-breaking solutions.
This year’s biennale, the twenty-third of the series, coincides with the centenary of the 1921 referendum in Sopron, which has special significance and symbolism for our town.
A hundred years ago the inhabitants of Sopron and the surrounding villages set an example to all of us in patriotism, pledging their fidelity to a Hungary bleeding from the wounds of a lost World War and the dictated Peace Treaty of Trianon. The successful referendum in Sopron a century ago restored the hope in Hungarians that they did have a worthy goal to live and fight for in the times to come.
We have remained Hungarian, and the name of Sopron has merged with fidelity upon the influence of the event a hundred years ago. The nation rewarded the courage and determination of the citizens of the town with the title “Civitas Fidelissima – The Most Faithful City”. All these events have been decisive in our identity and may fill each successive generation with pride.
We are confident that Sopron also has a future, not only a past. Now – just like a hundred years ago – great things are in the making. In addition to the revitalization of the historic centre and the Castle district, year by year new attractions and experiences await the visitors. We deem it a fundamental task to present the values of the town’s rich history and culture – here belongs the 23rd medal biennial, staged every two years in our town over the past 44 years.
Dear Artists and Visitors,
We are grateful to the artists for the works with which they have contributed again to the perpetuation of the tradition of the Sopron Biennial of Medal Art. A very warm welcome to all visitors – be they residents of Sopron or guests from all corners of the country or the world. We are convinced that the Medal Biennial, with its time-honoured tradition, will remain a worthy and distinguished venue in our beloved town in the forthcoming decades as well.
Dr. Ciprián Farkas
Mayor