ARTSTATION: THE TUNING HAS BEGUN
ALL DAY UNDERGROUND FESTIVAL AT THE NÉPSZÍNHÁZ STREET STATION
DBR’s cultural series of events of this year has arrived to its last stage: with the name of ArtStation the Suppré/Neopaint.hu is organizing an all day street art festival at the metro 4 Népszínház Street station built by the consortium comprising Bilfinger, Porr and Vegyépszer on Saturday this week.
At the all day event besides wall painting and exhibitions, many of the Hungarian break dancers will be present also, and the mood will be determined by hip-hop style with recognized performers. The metro builders are pleased to provide a place for the initiative, because in addition to the fact that the general public may see the station in this particular form, it is deemed important even now at the phase of completion to connect the district into Budapest’s "circulation".
The single space and grandiose Népszínház Street station is structurally completed, and in a few months once the tunnel borers have passed the interior builders will take over the place, and respectively the track building contractor. Parallel to the station construction major part of the Köztársaság Square will be renewed, thus rehabilitation works to roads, sidewalks, connecting points have already commenced, but landscaping works enjoy great emphasis also. In the spirit of environmental protection the contractor replanted 11 trees with reference to the construction and planted multiple numbers in the district. From the presence of the metro station, specialists hope for the improvement of this part of the district and its organic connection to the public transportation of downtown. As one of the first signs of this, with its nearly 25 m depth and 2700 m2 floor area the station has for long been a worthy venue for artistic and cultural initiatives, since with the support of the contractor consortium a global graffiti competition and even a monumental concert took place recently.
In the frame of the ArtStation on Saturday besides the invited foreign artists visitors will meet the works and performances of the eminent representatives of Hungarian underground culture. Artistic flows pertinent to the now extremely popular subculture have grown to be defining artistic styles among the young, and related events achieved very large attendance as well. The idea of ArtStation was born with this spirit also: the intention is showcasing some forms of urban art (graffiti, street art, break, hip-hop) in a eclectic way and in an impressive environment, and at the same time drawing attention to the importance of legality. Primarily those artists received invitation, who have been dominant and popular figures of the underground subculture since its formation. According to the organizers this industrial space located nearly 25 m underground is an ideal venue for exhibiting quality underground art.
The main attraction will be the wall decorations: the artist will paint the inner surface of the whole station up to 5 m height, overall in a length of about 260 m, which as a kind of special permanent exhibition will receive the participants of frequent professional visits until the final interior design fitting. The painting works will be realized by the 25 most renowned Hungarian artists. In addition the classic street art will also be present with emphasis, in the frame of which the organizers are preparing a canvas based picture exhibition, as well. For sure the mood will be enhanced by those Hungarian break dancers, who have already proven their skills many times on international ground, but the programs will of course be based on music, more specifically hip-hop, with participation of the most famous DJs and MCs. Visitors are awaited at Köztársaság Square between 2 pm and 11 pm on Saturday, 26th September.
Budapest, 24th September 2009
DBR Metro Project Directorate