Vértessy Dorottya

Dorottya Vértessy graduated from the Master’s program in Ceramic Design at Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design in 2024. Through her work, she aims to convey messages and reflect on current issues by highlighting the narrative of objects, using contemporary applied arts and the medium of ceramics. Her approach seeks to address various social, societal, or psychological problems through the tools of art.

About the objects

Dorottya Vértessy aims to address one of the most common types of eating disorders, anorexia nervosa, through her work. In Hungary today, there are at least 30,000 diagnosed cases of anorexia, with one in twelve patients losing their lives to complications of the disease within ten years. ’This makes anorexia one of the psychiatric disorders with the highest mortality rates in the country. Despite these statistics, unfortunately, society’s perception of the disorder remains quite negative. The most serious issue is that many people approach anorexia with skepticism, seeing only emaciated individuals and assuming the solution is simple: they should just eat. However, the problem is not so straightforward and cannot be addressed through physical treatment alone. The disorder is rooted in the psyche, so recovery must also be sought through psychology.’

The artist’s goal is to open the eyes of society to the seriousness of the problem and encourage people to approach those struggling with the disorder with greater understanding. She intends to achieve this by designing and creating an absurd collection of objects aimed at exploring and highlighting the typical behaviors and attitudes of anorexia patients towards food and eating. These objects prioritize conceptuality over functionality, using their design and form to illustrate the various mental processes, thoughts, and behaviors related to eating in my work titled “Can you eat all?”