Róbert László Bácsi born in Budapest in 1978. The Prima Primissima Junior Award winner and a freelance photographer. He is interested mainly in documental photography and feels closest to portrait and social representation. He won numerous awards, like Hungarian Press Photo, André Kertész Grand Prize or Márton Munkácsi Award. In 2021, he was a Robert Capa scholarship holder. He received the József Pécsi Scholarship three times and was twice the Press Photographer of the year in Axel Springer Photo Competition. He received the second Prize in the NPPA Best Of Photojournalism International. His work has been published in several magazines, eg. in National Geographic, Hamu és Gyémánt, Reader’s Digest and in the daily Népszabadság.
“The Way of Zen“
Population growth, rapid technological advancement, and global capitalism have a negative social impact. The destruction of our environment forces us to reflect on the future. Most people live in big cities, caught in an endless cycle of work and rush while longing for harmony. Meanwhile, more and more people seek a life in line with nature, minimising ecological footprint
I began photographing this family in 2016. They live in the Balaton Uplands, Hungary, in a small house without running water, relying solely on solar energy. Despite the challenges of daily life, they refuse to change their way of living because, to them, freedom is paramount. Their past was filled with adventurous travels, and their son, Zen, was born during one such journey in the mountain village of El Refugio, Mexico, at 2,600 meters in the jungle.
To them, true freedom means not selling your soul or becoming a slave to the system. They believe in choosing a vocation, not just a job. “You follow a calling, mastering it to share knowledge and to help others”, they say. Csilla teaches yoga, while Robi practices sound meditation, music therapy, and healing. They also earn a living guiding rock climbing and sea kayaking tours.
Zen, eight years old now, naturally embraces his parents’ way of life, shaped by their belief in a more peaceful future. They hold that, whether we realise it or not, life’s purpose is to free the spirit from the material world — a path they call enlightenment. They hope to pass this philosophy on to Zen, so that one day, he can freely choose his own way.
