Graphic traditions

Even though the former Soviet countries were in effect separated from the West, an ongoing exhibition in Slovakia illustrates how culture still managed to seep through the border. “East and West: Classical European Graphics 1970-2004” will run through July 17 in Bratislava at the Artotéka Gallery. The show, by several European graphic artists, shines the spotlight on engravings and graphics that organizers say flourished during the 1970s in Eastern Europe – at a time when the West shifted toward computer-based new technologies.

According to Swiss art collector Benoit Junod, Eastern Europe in the 1970s, despite the communist regime and associated political isolation, was the depositary of great European engravings and graphics, all the while the artwork tradition was losing ground in the West. While this theory sounds rody, it may well simply indicate how Eastern European artists were isolated, holding onto a classical tradition, where others had moved into the contemporary world. Slovak artists on display are: Jiri Anderle, Vladimir Gazovic and Albín Brunovsky whose works feature classical graphic traditions. Other artists from Bulgaria, Russia, Germany, Austria and Great Britain will also be displayed. The Artotéka Gallery is a private, non-commercial gallery in Bratislava, which opened its doors in 1991and is aimed at supporting and presenting Slovak and international art, mainly through graphics and book illustrations.

INFO
Artotéka Gallery
Tel.: [421] 2.546.30427
www.artoteka.com

Under the summer stars

This summer marks the 73rd annual Szeged Open Air Theater Festival, this year celebrating the 125th anniversary of the reconstruction of the picturesque City of Szeged, following its destruction over a century ago from what is now called the “Great Flood.” The vast stage at Dome Square in Szeged’s city center will be the setting for a performance by the Brussels-based Crystal Dance Academy, which will present “Rockquiem,” a modern day interpretation of Mozart’s Requiem July 9&10. The Berlin Symphonic Orchestra will perform July 18. From Rome, Italian soloists will present Verdi’s “Nabucco” July 23&25, and a palatial Opera Gala will take place with the contribution of the Orchestra da Camera Santa Cecilia Rome, performing Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons” July 24. Other notable international guests include Abbafever from London, playing their musical story
“Abbashow,” a French comic performance. A musical piece by Jérome Savary entitled: “Zazou,” will be presented August 13&14, which builds on popular chanson songs of Paris in the 1940s. The Hungarian line of the festival will be performances by the Szeged Contemporary Dance Company’s ballet “New World,” choreographed by Tamás Juronics July 9&10, and a special gift concert of the Szeged Symphonic Orchestra August 16. Finishing up the festival are concerts by jazz old-timers Molnár, the Benkó Dixieland band, Storyville Jazz Band and the Budapest Ragtime Band, who will fill the stage during the Dómdixie Gala August 22.

INFO
Szegedi Open Air Theater Festival
Tel: [36] 62.554.725 / 62.554.726
www.nemzetiszinhaz.szeged.hu/hun/outdoor

Storytelling

The saying goes: The more a photograph shows, the less you actually know about the subject. Photographs act as witnesses, detailing specific moments and illustrating particular fleeting realities. “Eye-Witness-Testimony” is the name of this year’s Hungarian Month of Photography, a festival now in its seventh consecutive year which centers on the photograph as an eyewitness, its unique confessions and how a photograph represents reality. The Hungarian Month of Photograph began in mid-April and runs through mid- June at various venues around Budapest. This year’s festival features exhibits by well-known photographers like Brazilian Sebastiao Salgado, Czech Tono Stano, German Regina Schmeken, and Hungarian photographers Lajos Tabák, Zoltán Vancsó, Lenke Szilágyi. Leading the events is Sebastiao Salgado’s “The Exodus” exhibition, in the Museum Ludwig May 13-June 27. The display illustrates how a staged composition aimed at perfection can tell a story or a confession as well as a promiscuous photo. Tono Stano’s “The Aesthetics of the Body,” in the French Institute May 13-June 15 portrays the beauty of the human body in its natural form through black and white pictures. The Dorottya Galéria hosts Regina Schmeken’s “The New Center, Photo’s 1989-2000” from May 18-June 10. This exhibition focuses on the disputed role of Germany as the center of Europe.

This year, upon request from viewers in previous years, the festival has broadened toward larger Hungarians cities like Dunaújváros, Kecskemét, Nyíregyháza and Vác. Whether the viewer is interested in traditional forms of photography or new-wave, slightly altered and manipulated photography, visitors will have a hard time choosing from the large number of quality exhibitions.

INFO
2004 Hungarian Month of Photography
Fotóhónap 2004
www.fotohonap.hu

Spanish brushstrokes

Spain has produced some of the most noteworthy artists of the twentieth century, and two Budapest exhibitions at the Műcsarnok this summer promise to shed light on Spain’s artistic prowess. From July 2-Sept. 12, , the exhibition entitled: “Espana 1950: The decade of rebirth,” will demonstrate the versatility of Spanish art through a decade colored by political and economic conflicts of the Spanish Civil War between 1936-1939. These years in Spain saw a number of famous artists emerge, including the country’s famed Pablo Picasso. Many artists of this era covered the war, almost as missionaries of a cause, and portrayed the war in its most grueling and disturbing details. Spain’s avant-garde artistic movement turned toward new forms expression that formed the fundamental traits of Spanish art through the early 1970s. Artist works displayed in the upcoming Műcsarnok exhibition include: Manolo Millares, Pablo Palazuelo and Antonio Saura, as well as abstract sculptors Martín Chirino, Andreu Alfaro Oteiza and Eduardo Chillida. Also featured are renowned architects Gabriel Cualladó, Xavier Miserachs and Ramón Masats. The second exhibition: “Picasso: Book illustrations 1944-1969,” consist of the graphic works of Picasso, Spain’s most famous artist. It will display works from the collection of the Spanish Bancaja Bank, and show the artistic development and techniques in Picasso’s graphics, an area just as significant as his other better known works, including paintings and sculpture.

INFO
Műcsarnok
Tel: [36] 1.460.7000
www.mucsarnok.hu