Unknown Insignia

In his artistic practice, Ádám Varga explores fundamental questions of art philosophy, such as reproducibility and appropriation. In his work, he uses a plotter machine which cuts out digitally designed motifs. Through the use of this industrial tool, he reflects on the boundaries contemporary art imposes between artistic disciplines.

The solo exhibition Unknown Insignia presents the culmination of Varga’s recent large-scale project focused on heraldry. Its goal is to reinterpret heraldry through painting while constructing a fictional dimension. In heraldry, the shield is considered a fundamental element, as early coats of arms appeared on shields distinguishing warring factions from one another. The primary function of a coat of arms is, therefore, identification. Families, cities, and later schools, institutions, and organisations could have, and some still have, coats of arms, primarily serving as carriers of different identities. The strict formal rules of heraldry, both in symbolism and colour, make these sign systems easily distinguishable from other visual codes.

The term Unknown Insignia suggests that Varga’s coats of arms feel familiar yet provoke uncertainty, as they do not fulfil their primary function of clear identification. His works highlight how many coats of arms found in today’s visual culture no longer adhere to medieval heraldic rules, as their usage and meaning have evolved over time. While most of his works remain faithful to the shield shape, Varga deliberately defies heraldry’s formal and chromatic conventions. Each piece is linked to an imagined identity that exists in a parallel, abstract dimension and draws from the language of contemporary visual culture. As a result, his compositions remind us of existing emblematic designs — such as football team crests or brand logos — yet they are not identical to them. Instead, they trigger our associative reflexes through their colours and forms.

Varga’s interest in heraldic systems emerged in the summer of 2023 during a period of travel, when he became intrigued by the dynamic visual language of his destination. He was drawn to a visual tradition that, due to its long history, is rarely questioned, very rigid yet constantly evolving. Upon closer examination, one might notice that many coats of arms in our immediate surroundings now function more like logos or signage, serving as aesthetic tools.

Beyond the conceptual framework, the technical execution of Varga’s paintings plays a crucial role in his artistic approach. The digital image files containing the coat of arms designs encompass the entire series, only a portion of which has been realized as paintings. This archive of designs will be featured in an art publication accompanying the exhibition. The exhibited works combine the structured nature of digital designs with the analog qualities of materiality, such as the deliberate emphasis on raw, unprimed canvas. The horizontally striated brushstrokes create a soft texture on the surface, while the sharp, precise stencil edges convey a mechanical or artificial atmosphere. The forms cut by the plotter machine function not as stickers but as stencils, with both positive and negative cut-out shapes utilised in the process. This method, based on masking and layering, allows compositions to be built up in successive layers, revealing themselves only when the masking materials and foils are removed.

The spatial characteristics of the aqb project space allow for dynamic shifts in perspective. The Unknown Insignia exhibition showcases different approaches within the series, highlighting its diversity. The viewer’s interaction with the works depends on their vantage point, engaging with different pieces from different angles. Within the exhibition, the smaller, white-background paintings reflect the visual language of logos and signage. The paper-based works created with airbrush techniques possess a delicate materiality, evoking the aesthetics of prints. Among the large-scale paintings, Art FC and Champion imitate the aesthetics of football club crests, while Social and Union exaggerate the formal elements and dominant red hues of socialist emblems. The Blue and Red paintings reference stereotypical gender color codes, while Engraved Arm and Hatched Crest incorporate hatch patterns at different angles, alluding to the classical heraldic color-coding system, where each type of line signifies a different colour. However, in Varga’s interpretation, these patterns are used arbitrarily as purely formal elements. The Ma and doo paintings resemble snapshots from an animation, depicting forms that are in motion, assembling into a coat of arms. Some elements even extend beyond the shield shape. This effect is reinforced by motifs extending onto the exhibition space walls, borrowed from the paintings themselves.

Boglárka Tóth