György Petőcz said the work done in 2007 would provide a good basis for the institute's programmes in 2008. The most important task now is to reach outside of Brussels, into Wallonia, Flanders and even across the border to the Netherlands. Territorial expansion requires building a network and the institute's new, multi-lingual home page (at http://www.hungarianinstitute.be/index.php?lang=EN) will help efforts.
The institute has successfully established a presence at a number of Belgian festivals and plans to continue this practice in the future, Petőcz said. Young Hungarian designers will participate in the Design Biennale in Liege, in Wallonia, and a large exhibition of works by the Hungarian avant-garde artist Lajos Vajda (1908-1941) is planned in Antwerp, in Flanders.
The institute has organised the participation of the Hungarian theatre troupe Krétakör at Europalia, a cultural festival of European Union members. The troupe will perform Backland in the Théatre Royal de Namur. Other Hungarian performers to be featured at the festival will be the ethnojazz violinist Félix Lajko and the flautist Eszter Horgas. The institute, in cooperation with the European Parliament, will invite Hungarian gypsy musicians and dancers for an international Roma festival.
Petőcz said it was also an important achievement that works by some of Hungary's most important composers, including Béla Bartók, Zoltán Kodály and Jenő Hubay, had been played in the renowned Conservatoire of Brussels. Marking the Kodály memorial year in 2007, a highly successful concert was played featuring the composer's works on Brussel's main square, he added.
Another successful event hosted by the institute last year was an evening celebrating the poems of Attila József, as read by Tamás Jordán and Ferenc Sebő. Writer György Konrád held a presentation on Europe's boundaries at the 0. Festival of Philosophy, and films by Erasmus award-winning director Péter Forgács were shown. A concert by Erzsi Kiss and her band attracted visitors from as far away as the Netherlands.
The introduction of Hungarian galleries presenting contemporary Hungarian art will continue in 2008. An exhibition by the Várfok Gallery has been so successful that it was extended until January 10, Petőcz said.
Brussel's Hungarian Cultural Institute has joined up with the Hungarian cultural institutes of Paris and London to invite a joint tender in early 2008 to organise art and music events. The cooperation will allow the winning applicants to present themselves in all three countries, while the institutes will be able to share costs, Petőcz said.
Source: Hungarian News Agency (MTI)
