I was asked to give an interview through Skype for the SOCIETY OF HUNGARIAN GRAPHIC DESIGNERS AND TYPOGRAPHERS - matt.org.hu, who is running an international graphic design competition. The title is "Annoying? Redesign it!" Everything imaginable found in Hungary can be redesigned.

Here is the gist of it in English:

Budapest business center

I would change the regulation in Budapest to allow for higher buildings and second level transportation (such as sky trains). This will allow for a financial and business district that is densely populated and still livable, because the space isn't taken up by low-rise buildings, rather high-rise structure and lot of parks and other communal recreational facilities.

Smart ID card

I would change the identification system. Instead of the numerous cards, such ID, residence card, tax card, driving license, etc. are all on different cards we should join all these functions and more into one smart card. I have experience in this because I worked on the Bahrain smart card that is multifunctional and safe card that allows people to identify themselves everywhere. The new card in Hungary could serve as a cash card and it can have an area where registered establishments could write and read their own data, such as public transport, schools, fitness clubs, etc. Everything would be on this card and all this data would also be available online. Security is a concern, but the benefits far outweigh any security issues. Plus the security can be made stronger on a smart card compared to the current scattered systems. Later this card can change into a different object, such as a ring or a chip placed under the skin.

Q: Do you like the current ID document design?

I think they are ugly. They have unnecessary decoration, small texts, numbers and other irrelevant information. All you need is a photo and a name on a card. The authenticity of the document should be verified electronically anyway. Especially if the card is a cash card, people have no business knowing your birth date or other details.

Outdoor advertising

I think Hungary should follow the example of Sao Paolo and ban all outdoor advertising. I know it would be a big problem for a lot of businesses. I have friends working in the Outdoor industry. But, the amount of outdoor ads on streets is detrimental to everybody's standard of life. You can't see the buildings, streets, shops and even people from them. There is no standardization, there are at least 4-5 sizes. On long term banning them would help everyone. It would help tourism, more businessmen would want to live in Budapest. We could limit outdoor to industrial and commercial areas, where they would not hurt the cityscape.

Q: Is Hungary behind other countries in terms of creativity?

No, I think as far as my experience goes Hungary is pretty much on the same level with other developed and developing countries. There is something important to understand regarding this subject, and I only fully accepted this fact after I established my ad agency: In advertising creatives are not artists, we're commercial artists. Therefore the business objectives of our work are more important than the aesthetic or creative values. Naturally the better creatively the work the better the sales are, but not always. There are cases where client does know better and we creatives have to listen or the business will suffer. This is a hard reality of life and a creative isn't willing to go with this he should consider switching to the art field where the requirements are different from commercial art. Again, for 10 years I thought differently, but now I'm convinced about this simple fact.