Oskár Čepan Award 2026 for Norbert Kuki
The expert jury—Christina Li, Vojtěch Novák, Noit Banai, and William Stover—selected Andrej Kiripolský, Natália Šimonová, and Norbert Kuki, a graduate of the Intermedia Studio, from among 48 applicants as laureates of the Oskár Čepan Award 2026.
Jury Statement:
The artistic practice of Norbert Kuki cannot be easily classified into a single category, and this very unclassifiability is part of its integrity. In his work, which operates at the intersection of social sculpture, activism, rap, and merchandising, he does not primarily focus on making his projects perfect or institutionally recognized, but rather on proximity, exchange, and resisting having others speak on his behalf. The jury values in his portfolio something that is harder to achieve than refined aesthetics: a genuinely non-fetishizing relationship with the Roma community from within, built through long-term exchange rather than short, superficial encounters that so often lead to tokenistic or reductive representation. Kuki’s work carries a universal dimension of the feeling of uprootedness, resonating across diasporas far beyond its immediate context. The jury appreciates the ethical seriousness and social urgency that drive his artistic practice.
Norbert Kuki
Norbert Kuki (1999, Dunajská Streda, SK) is a Roma artist from Slovakia. He graduated from the Department of Intermedia at the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Bratislava. With a background in visual art and music (hip-hop/rap), he uses art to define contemporary Roma identity and as a tool for preserving, disseminating, and explaining Roma culture. His work draws on the Romani language, stories, and legends, which he explores from multiple perspectives. Recently, he has focused on questions related to what it means when a language becomes official, how translation functions, the impact of globalization, and the role of music in sustaining language.
His recent exhibitions include Smoke and Mirrors, Bratislava City Gallery – Pálffy Palace, Bratislava; POV YOLO WIP TBA 2, tranzit, Bratislava; (nem) beállni a sorba, Artus Studio, Budapest; B5 Artist Residence Programme; Magma – Contemporary Medium, Sfântu Gheorghe, Romania (all 2025); Flowing Through, Pistori Palace, Bratislava; I am the Balm on Sisyphus' Lips, DKP, Bratislava (both 2024); ArtMarket Budapest (Gandy Gallery); SKÚTER VI., Ján Koniarka Gallery in Trnava; and the [fjúžn] Roots festival (all 2023). He completed an artist residency at B5 Studio in Târgu Mureș, Romania (2024). (bio written by Judit Angel)
Portrait: Martin Lacko
