by Eszter Révész
Budapest offers a colorful palette of artistic events in the upcoming month, and even though the weather might make us want to stay at the comfort of our own homes, there are several exhibitions, concerts and literary evenings that will make you get off your sofa. Here are 7 noteworthy event suggestions for you to discover the cultural side of the city.
Budapesti Őszi Fesztivál (Budapest Autumn Festival)
09.26.-10.10.
This year, the festival follows a contemporary theme, welcoming exciting independent productions. The stage is the capital city itself, the events are held on the streets, in market-halls, and any public spaces you can think of. Although there are only a few days left, you can still catch a string quartet on the streets of Buda, go to exhibition openings, and join to a sound-guided collective painting. The events combine theatre, music, literature and much more to create a truly interactive sound and visual experience.
Életjel 21. ARC Közérzeti Kiállítás
09.17.-10.17.
ARC exhibition became one of the most successful annual exhibitions in Budapest. Each year, the artists find creative ways to display public opinion and discomfort in their works. Freedom of creativity and freedom of public opinion are the main forces behind this artistic event thus politics and societal problems are the main sources of inspiration. In 2021, they reflect to the hardships of last year, including increasing unemployment and poverty, and unfair policies of the Hungarian government. It is a promising event to spark discussions and debates, so I suggest going there with a great company, it is free and easily accessible at Bikás park.
Art Market Budapest
10.07.-10.10.
Art Market Budapest is an international contemporary art fair, welcoming artists from more than 30 countries. The concept is built on promoting the art of both the post-communist Eastern- and Western European countries and other continents. Be prepared to see the most exciting installations and unexpected concepts. Besides the exhibition, the international art industry conference called “Inside Art” offers presentations and panel discussions on hot topics, such as “Collecting Art: A private matter, really?” or “Central Europe in the Center of attention”. It opens on Thursday in Bálna Budapest, and tickets are already available online.
360 Design Budapest
10.04.-10.10.
360 Design market also takes place in Bálna Budapest as a supporting program of the Art Market. The 2021 agenda is environmental awareness, recycling and material-conscious design. Their goal is to introduce ambitious Hungarian and regional designers to a world-wide audience. Besides the exhibitors, such as Yoza, a Hungarian furniture design company and Loomiosa, a newly founded brand in the field of light design, there are several panel discussions and guided tours taking place online and offline as well. If you are too busy studying for your midterms, don’t worry, they offer a VR walkthrough on their website and it is surprisingly enjoyable!
Liszt Ünnep (Liszt Celebration)
10.08.-10.24.
The international cultural festival is a celebration of the world-famous musician Ferenc Liszt, who was born 210 years ago. The program series welcome not only classical music concerts and operas, but contemporary music and dance performances, jazz and light music. The Zeneakadémia and Müpa Budapest give place to most of the events, but several other concert halls in Budapest and Esztergom also host some of the performances. The festival welcomes Grammy-award winner Gilberto Gil, the legendary flamenco company Compañía Antonio Gades, and gives place to the premier of an opera-musical, The Master and Margarita, by Levente Gyöngyösi.
Photos courtesy of Unspash.com
Margó Irodalmi Fesztivál és Könyvvásár (Margó Festival of Literature and Book Fair) 10.14.-10.17.
Margó is a key event in the Hungarian and international contemporary literature, where the writer, the reader and the book meet at discussions, literary evenings and concerts. The festival has a very rich agenda and welcomes the most important figures of Hungarian contemporary literature, for instance Krisztina Tóth and Tibor Bödőcs, accompanied by international writers, like Alex Schulman, Swedish writer and journalist. Hungarian bands: Ivan and the Parazol and Magashegyi Underground, boost the atmosphere of this year’s festival. Margó takes place in its familiar place, the Várkert Bazár, while also hosting some of the literary events of the Liszt Celebration.
BUSH – The Club Festival of the New East
10.21.-10.22.
If you are tired of mainstream performers and open to experiment with new ones from Eastern Europe, Budapest Showcase Hub is the place to go. Every year, new bands arrive to Budapest to give showcase concerts in the hope of signing contracts with big music labels. The night is all about concerts, but during the day, the professionals and ambitious musicians of the Eastern European music industry address current issues at panel discussions and debates. For anyone, who has an interest in the music industry, this could be a great opportunity to get a deeper insight to the world of music. The lineup includes Amoeba, Badfocus and O’Sullivan amongst many other performers, tickets are still available online and on site as well.
