For the month of April, laser light installations by Munkácsy Mihály Award winning Hungarian painter, graphic, light and holographic artist Attila Csáji have been selected as Work of Art in Focus. The artworks are showcased in Pesti Vigadó at the artist's exhibition entitled "Flashes of the Past and Present".

Attila Csáji was born in the Historical Upper Hungary based Szepsi in 1939. After World War II, he and his family were relocated from Kosice to Budapest. In 1964, he graduated from the Teacher Training College of Eger with a degree in drawing. He was one of the main promoters and organisers of the neo-avant-garde style movement in Hungary, which started in the 1960s. His artistic activities to this end were supported by scholarships to foreign countries.

His interest in arts were coupled by scientific research. In the 1970s, with the support of the Hungarian State Institute for Physical Research and with the backing of the leading figure of Hungarian laser research Norbert Kroó, he studied the possibilities afforded by laser image creation. As a result, a new image transformation technique called the superposition method was developed, tested and then patented in 1980. In his art, Attila Csáji started to use laser as a new light source. In the process, he reinterpreted laser interferences and created figurative and emblematic images, which he used to design non-stop laser shows composed of organic structures. The world's first visual research institute, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology selected him for a fellowship in recognition of his work and achievements in light art.

One part of the exhibition entitled "Flashes of the Past and Present" currently staged in Pesti Vigadó focuses on these works of light art. Multicoloured laser light installations are showcased in the exhibition hall situated in Pesti Vigadó's basement. The showcasing features works of art produced at the end of the 20th century, which, at the time of their creation, were considered to be brand new and unique all over the world. Since then, this technology has become an integral part of most performing arts, which also underscores the importance of these installations.

The artwork of the month can be seen in the exhibition entitled Flashes from the Past and Present until 2 July, every day between 10:00 and 19:00 in the Ground Floor and Lower Floor exhibition spaces of the Vigadó Pesti.