In less than a week, four world-renowned artists will visit the House of Arts in Veszprém, as part of the Veszprém-Balaton 2023 European Capital of Culture programme’s artist-in-residence programme. Erik Kessels and Thomas Mailaender visit Veszprém with their exhibition entitled Europe Archive, Noémie Goudal with Inhale/Exhale, and Dafna Talmor with See of Stones, with the support of the European Capital of Culture 2023 (ECC 2023).
The main objective of the ECC 2023 programme is to present the Veszprém-Bakony-Balaton region with contemporary art and fresh approaches. The common denominator of the resulting works is that they were inspired by Lake Balaton or the region: the invited artists created their unique works based on their experiences and impressions of the place. As a participant of the international artist residency programme „Balaton Eye”, the House of Arts Veszprém also had the opportunity to work with visiting artists.
The Europe Archive exhibition, open to the public from 22 June 2023, is a joint project by Erik Kessels from the Netherlands, and Thomas Mailaender from France. The artists, both avid collectors, aim to reconstruct Europe’s collective memory by displaying their collection of unique objects from European flea markets. During the preparation of the exhibition, they concentrated especially on the flea markets around Veszprém, but they also visited the markets in Budapest. Their main strength is that, instead of creating new works, they combine existing objects and photographs and present them in a new context.
Inhale/Exhale by French artist Noémie Goudal opens on 29 June at the House of Arts. Goudal’s work is based on a meticulous study of the natural sciences, her main area of interest being the intersection of ecology and anthropology. The title Inhale/Exhale refers to the rhythm of our existence, one of the fundamental conditions of human life. The exhibition takes its name from the video work that is part of the exhibition, which shows a representation of nature: a lush environment hiding in the forest surrounding a small lake. The peaceful and harmonious natural environment turns out to be a staged scene, where the props of nature are slowly transformed into a scene of destruction. The exhibition also includes a photo installation entitled Démentèlement III.
See of Stones by British artist Dafna Talmor will also be on view in Veszprém from 29 June. Talmor’s art is based on her passion for landscape. But her approach is anything but classic. Her work has a strong contemporary visual presence and aesthetic that is not easily comparable to other contemporary photographic practices. During her residency programme, Talmor explored the special treasures and natural features of the Balaton landscape, such as the nature reserve of the Paleokarst of Úrkút, the Roman Baths of Bakonynana, the nature trails of the Tihany peninsula, and the basalt colums of Kisapát and Hegyestű.
The exhibition is curated by Claudia Küssel, and organised by Bernadett Grászli, Viktória Herth, Éva Hete, Orsolya Németh, and Marian Sörös.