The Ecce Homo LEGO® travelling exhibition continues its cultural mission at FÓRUM Debrecen

From August 25, Hungary’s largest LEGO® art installation can be seen at a new location, FÓRUM Debrecen Shopping Centre. The monumental mosaic inspired by Mihály Munkácsy’s painting Ecce Homo is made up of 155,494 LEGO® elements and will be on display on level -1 of the shopping centre until September 9. Created through a joint initiative of the Déri Museum and its partners, the exhibition aims, particularly as the new school year approaches, to bring children and families closer to the art of Mihály Munkácsy.

From June 1 to August 24, Hajdúszoboszló hosted the unique travelling exhibition. During the summer, tens of thousands of visitors saw the LEGO® reinterpretation of Mihály Munkácsy’s world-famous Ecce Homo in the lobby of the Aqua-Palace Indoor Aquatic Centre. The highly successful cultural initiative will now return to Debrecen: between August 25 and September 9, 2026, visitors can see the nearly four-metre-wide artwork on level -1 of FÓRUM Debrecen Shopping Centre.

Ajtony Átányi, Director of FÓRUM Debrecen Shopping Centre, said it is particularly important for the shopping centre to provide space for initiatives that convey cultural value and bring communities together beyond the shopping experience.

“FÓRUM Debrecen is a meeting point for families, young people and different generations every day, so we consider it a great opportunity to bring art closer to the public in such a spectacular and accessible form. We hope that many people will stop in front of the painting, and that for some visitors this experience will spark an interest in Mihály Munkácsy and the original work housed at the Déri Museum,” said Ajtony Átányi.

The timing of the exhibition is no coincidence either. The period before the start of the school year and the first days of September provide a new opportunity for the museum to reach younger generations in a setting that is a natural part of their everyday lives.

Dr János Angi, Director of the Déri Museum, stressed that one of the project’s key objectives from the outset had been to bring Munkácsy’s art to new communities by taking it beyond the traditional museum setting.

“We consider it particularly important to reach more children during the start of the school year and, through them, their parents as well. We start from the world of LEGO®, which is familiar to every generation, but the story ultimately leads to Mihály Munkácsy and the Déri Museum. We want as many people as possible to experience that museums and fine art are not distant or inaccessible worlds, but can also offer experiences, discovery and a sense of community. If someone encounters this special paraphrase for the first time at FÓRUM and then becomes curious about the original Ecce Homo, one of the most important goals of this cultural mission will have been achieved,” Dr János Angi emphasised.

From Debrecen through Oradea to Hajdúszoboszló

The story of the monumental artwork began in autumn 2025. Students from primary schools in Debrecen, families and the tekerd! group of the Wesselényi Miklós Technical School and Dormitory of the Nyíregyháza Vocational Training Centre took part in the community building process. Children with disabilities, hearing impairments and speech disorders also participated in the creation of the artwork.

The completed work was first presented to the public during Advent 2025 at the Déri Museum, near the Munkácsy Room, home to the world-famous Munkácsy Trilogy.

The paraphrase began its travelling exhibition tour in March 2026. As part of the Déri Museum’s cultural mission, it has also visited towns where cultural attractions of this scale are less frequently available. Audiences in Bagamér and Nyírábrány, among others, had the opportunity to see it.

The next major stop was Oradea, where the artwork was presented as part of the Festum Varadinum programme series. It attracted considerable interest there as well, with many visitors specifically coming to the venue to see the LEGO® Ecce Homo.

The travelling exhibition then arrived in one of Hungary’s most popular holiday destinations during the summer tourist season. From June 1 to August 24, visitors could see it in the lobby of the Aqua-Palace Indoor Aquatic Centre operated by Hungarospa Hajdúszoboszlói Gyógyfürdő és Egészségturisztikai Zrt.

155,494 elements, 600 kilograms – one monumental image

The mosaic was inspired by Mihály Munkácsy’s painting Ecce Homo, the original of which can be seen at the Déri Museum as part of the Munkácsy Trilogy.

The LEGO® paraphrase consists of eight panels. The complete artwork measures 250 × 390 centimetres and is made up of 155,494 individual 1 × 1 centimetre elements, weighing approximately 600 kilograms.

From the outset, however, the project was about much more than creating a record-sized LEGO® artwork. Its important objectives included learning through play, developing creativity, teamwork, visual literacy and community cooperation, as well as promoting social awareness and equal access.

During the community building process, children with different abilities and social backgrounds worked towards the same goal. The more than 155,000 tiny elements therefore not only recreated Munkácsy’s painting, but also created a story of community centred on cooperation and the joy of creation.

The project was realised through the cooperation of the City of Debrecen, the Déri Museum, LEGO Manufacturing Kft., the tekerd! group of the Wesselényi Miklós Technical School and Dormitory of the Nyíregyháza Vocational Training Centre, the Debrecen District School Board and the Nyíregyháza Vocational Training Centre.

The community building process also involved Fazekas Mihály Primary School, Dózsa György Primary School, Vénkerti Primary and Arts School, Benedek Elek Primary School, the Kossuth Lajos Practice Secondary School and Primary School of the University of Debrecen, and the Unified Special Education Methodology Institution for the Hearing Impaired.