6. Pécs, Hungary
The journey from Budapest to Pécs took around three hours. Again, lots of trees and greenery. Though just outside Budapest there was some really good graffiti art for a kilometre or two. There were also fields and fields of sunflowers and they were all facing the train and smiling at me. By coincidence one of my travelling companions took some papers out of her bag and promptly fell asleep. She’d already highlighted her work... I wonder if there’s something in the ink that induces sleep on long journeys?
Crumbs, I’ve just realised that i’ve just entered my fifth week. And I’m not half the shade of brown that I intended to be by this point. I’m going to have to do some serious baking.
I think I already knew, but I’m getting more evidence that no two cities that are Capital of Culture are the same. It means something different to each and each will make of it what it will. For Liverpool, it was our lifeline. I often said, pre-Tessa Jowell announcement, that if we hadn’t won, the Liver Birds would’ve flown away and Liverpool would have fulfilled the prophecy, and fallen into the sea. It was our saviour and we’ve turned it into some kind of god. We believe everything hinges on it and it owes us everything. We need to change our attitude and get on with what really matters - the work that we do and strengthening the arts infrastructure in the city.
Rant over.
There are so many commonalities and sometimes in Istanbul and Pécs the conversations that I had mirrored exactly those in Liverpool. One thing that is echoed is that without exception, artists and arts organisations think that the planning, programming and legacy issues are a mess ('catastrophic' was one word used in Hungary). The officials and those linked directly to the programming and the politicians say everything is going fine.
So back to Pécs. Not much physical evidence that they are to be Capital of Culture. Their buildings of beauty are revealed as just that, buildings of beauty, unlike some in Liverpool that have become billboards for the 08 logo (eg ABC cinema on Lime Street).
So, back to Pécs. One thing they really need to get sorted is how to sell train tickets. It took me 20 minutes to buy my ticket to Zagreb. The ticket seller kept moving things for no reason and opening and closing books and then moving things again. Then she disappeared for 10 minutes. How will they manage when they are overrun with tourists in 2010? I can’t imagine two cities more different than Istanbul and here. Istanbul with a population of around 14,000,000. Pécs has 170,000.
For the first time I felt out of my depth. The hotel I was staying in had 10 rooms. My fellow guests included a sports journalist from Germany who talked to me over breakfast about the Grand Prix and football. I wasn’t able to engage totally in conversation, as the only Grand Prix I’m knowledgeable about is the Eurovision Song contest (it’s called the Grand Prix in Europe). My other fellow guests were cigarette machine engineers from the Netherlands. We had a beer and ate crisps. One of them told me that there was no culture in Rotterdam - Capital of Culture in 2001 - just docks and muslims.
My meetings with the Artistic Director of the Bobita Puppet Theatre and an actor, Artistic Director of the (equivalent of) the Culture Company and two lecturers from the theatre department of the university (Pécs has the largest university in Hungary) were informative and revealing. Being Capital of Culture in 2010 was described as Pécs’ last chance after so much political, social and economic turmoil (compare with Liverpool). There have been between one and three resignations (or dismissals depending on who you speak to) and there are some exciting plans. The AD of the Cultural City Development is interested in collaboration with Hope Street (co-production, community engagement and artists from the city - there is a British Week in 2008 when the artists from Britain will only be from Liverpool.
The highlight of my stay was meeting Sznhay Marton of Mediator, an organisation that runs three outdoor/site specific installation/music/theatre/design festivals in Pécs each year. The company has just been given the old porcelain factory to use as its base and is a Creation Centre in the making. I spent the afternoon there finding out more about the plans to develop the building (if the landlord and funding is positive) and talking to the small but dedicated team of volunteers who are making the place happen. They’ve been there since March and transformed the place from a derelict shell to an adaptable performance/installation/making/rehearsal/experimental/worksop/living space. It’s rough and in the UK would fail health and safety and fire regulations at every hurdle, but it was inspiring and I got really excited by what it is and what the potential is. I was also inspired by the determination of Marton who described one of their 2010 lead in projects (taking place in 2008) that will involve artists from around the globe. By the end of the day he had visited Hope Street’s website, pasted the logo onto an A4 piece of paper and prepared a letter of support ready for me to sign, which of course I did. I even had a beer in the middle of the day.
I stumbled upon a Culture Coordinator working at the second place I stayed, a German guest-house. He told me about a festival that was currently taking place that involved artists from Essen, Pécs and Istanbul. I went along to the improvised dance performance in the tower within the ruins of the old city and met with the artists afterwards. The saxophonist from the Netherlands of Turkish descent has a sister working in South Africa helping kids with Aids. Via him I put her in touch with Adam McGuigan (www.adamstravels.com).
Three days was long enough in Pécs. I felt landlocked. There’s no river and it’s miles from the sea. I enjoyed some blistering sunshine but am looking forward to swimming in the sea. I woke the next day (my perennial 39th birthday) to be greeted by rain.
