It’s all about materials - The Budapest Design Material Library opens at Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design

You can find everything that is material: The Hungarian Fashion & Design Agency, in cooperation with the Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design, has created the Budapest Design Material Library, a material library curated by New York-based material consultants Material ConneXion and the only of its kind in the region. The constantly expanding collection and the online database available on site provide an opportunity for Hungarian and even international industry players to learn more about the most diverse material samples and their innovative uses.

An important priority of the Hungarian Fashion & Design Agency is to build long-term professional relationships with Hungarian and international educational stakeholders and organisations. The aim of this is to make a wide knowledge base and a professional network available to people involved in Hungarian fashion and design, helping them operate successfully in the future. Recognising that design and using the right raw materials are essential parts of how products are created, HFDA, in cooperation with the Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design, has established the Budapest Design Material Library, where you can find practically all kinds of materials.

The material library brings together the latest and most innovative materials from around the world in the university building, and in the form of an international database it makes them available to professionals and students. The Budapest Design Material Library will serve as a Material ConneXion franchise's satellite location. Polymers, metals, glass, ceramics and natural materials can be found in the world's largest database of material samples. Exciting innovations can be seen here, such as the bio-composite blend from the Italian company Livingcap, which is great for making individually moulded parts, and a special material from the Samira Boon architectural textile studio in Amsterdam, which can be used for space installations, wall panels and curtains. The material library can help Hungarian industry stakeholders to take advantage of the opportunities inherent in combining design and technology, and can support the emergence of innovative and digital solutions in Hungary. The establishment of the Budapest Design Material Library is significant because after Italy, Spain, Denmark and Sweden, the Hungarian capital now plays host to only the fifth material library franchise in Europe. This will help Budapest become a key research and development station in the region.

The material library, which is unlike any other initiative in the Central European region, is housed in the university building, so the facility can help put Hungary and the Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design at the centre of material and innovation processes. Among the materials of BDML we can find Hungarian innovations as well. For example, the sound emitting textile material of Judit Eszter Kárpáti and Esteban de la Torre, researchers at the Innovation Center of MOME. The Budapest Design Material Library, which currently has 300 material samples, is open to anyone looking for information in the fields of design, product development or other creative professions. To provide information on materials on an ongoing basis, it also has an online database of nearly 10,000 materials and manufacturing technologies, available in the facility, in English, Italian, German, Thai and Korean, complete with images and descriptions of the samples. For easier navigation, a computer workstation is available in the library, which visitors can use to search for material samples, to do research and to use the online database. QR codes can be found next to the materials on the sample racks, which can be scanned to learn about the main characteristics of, and information about the materials.

The library attracts interior designers, product manufacturers, architects, automotive designers, fashion designers, packaging material manufacturers and other professionals, encouraging joint research and interoperability between professions. It also serves as a community venue for interested parties, who will have the opportunity to learn about different material samples and their innovative uses during various professional events. As part of their studies, students will be able to see the current trends and technological innovations, thanks to which this industry - that in Hungary is still rather traditional - can move towards digital transformation. In addition to design industry stakeholders, the material library is open to large international companies in the fields of innovation, research and development. It also creates the possibility for the design industry to connect with other industries.