Night of the Museums 2026

This year, during Museums’ Night, the Blinken OSA Archivum invites visitors to join a dialogue!

The exhibition On Peace Square: The Peace Group for Dialogue presents the story of one of the most remarkable grassroots initiatives in Hungary in the 1980s: the independent Peace Group for Dialogue. The exhibition is the result of a collaboration between the Historical Archives of the Hungarian State Security and the Blinken OSA Archivum. Visitors can join guided tours led by the exhibition’s curators and take part in a creative workshop where they can make replicas of symbols and badges used by the group.

As part of the program, running from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m., we will also open the doors of the historic Goldberger House, the former industrial complex that is home to the Archivum. Visitors will have the opportunity to learn about the collections preserved here, including the background research materials of the Radio Free Europe Research Institute, as well as other Cold War and human rights archives.

The Goldberger House – Building Tour

One of downtown Budapest’s distinctive industrial heritage buildings, the Goldberger House is now home to the Blinken OSA Archivum. Within the walls of this former textile industry center, historical documents, research projects, exhibitions, and community programs come together, while the building itself preserves more than a century of Budapest's history.

For Night of the Museums, we will open spaces that are rarely accessible to visitors. The tour takes guests through the hidden corners of the Archivum, including its unique basement storage areas, home to the collections of Radio Free Europe and other Cold War-era records. For one evening, visitors can glimpse the world where traces of the past become sources for contemporary research.

Scheduled tour times:

June 20, 2026 | 4:00–5:00 PM

June 20, 2026 | 5:00–6:00 PM

June 20, 2026 | 8:00–9:00 PM

June 20, 2026 | 9:00–10:00 PM

June 20, 2026 | 10:00–11:00 PM

The tours are in English on demand.

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Come Play in Peace Square! – Interactive Creative Workshop

What would a peace symbol look like made on a typewriter? Do you know what frottage is? Do you remember the Hungarian ten-filler coin?

Step into the creative world of the peace movements of the 1980s through playful, hands-on activities. Make prints using historic peace symbols, experiment with typewriter art, create collages from old newspapers, or discover the technique of frottage.

Participants will learn about the actions and visual culture of the Peace Group for Dialogue while creating their own artworks. At the end of the workshop, we may form a collective peace symbol—or even take part in a “die-in,” a performative form of protest popular around the world.

Play, creativity, history, and shared reflection—for all ages.

The exhibition On Peace Square will remain open throughout the workshop. Visitors are encouraged to stay, explore, and discover the history of the peace movement through the exhibition.

Scheduled workshop times:

June 20, 2026 | 4:00–6:00 PM

June 20, 2026 | 7:00–9:00 PM

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Curatorial Guided Tour of the Exhibition Peace Square – The Independent Dialogue Peace Group

Opened on June 18, 2026, in the Archivum's Galeria Centralis, this exhibition presents the history of the Independent Dialogue Peace Group, a unique grassroots initiative in 1980s Hungary. Organized in cooperation with the Historical Archives of the Hungarian State Security, the exhibition explores how young Hungarian peace activists attempted to create an independent movement, separate both from the state apparatus and from the democratic opposition. The guided tour will be led by the exhibition's curators.

Scheduled tour time:

June 20, 2026 | 6:00–7:00 PM

The Program is in Hungarian.