Based on the Project "
The Back of Beyond
" by VS.hu




The pictures and impressions one is left with after watching the
documentary
-project ’
The Back of Beyond
’ are ambiguous. An image of a memorial plaque for a town that no longer exists, ’For Sale’ signs on abandoned houses or a goods van driving around the villages providing food supplies. With time you understand the underlying complexity of these moments referring to topics such as the lack of employment opportunities, feelings of prejudice or xenophobia, sometimes the desire of isolation amongst the inhabitants of the concerned villages. Inspired by the report of the Hungarian Central Statistical Office (KSH) released in April 2014 titled ’Settlements on the Edge of Existence’ the online news portal VS.hu commissioned a series of videos to help the understanding of the phenomenon. As matter of concern the report discussed
60 villages
where the population decreased by 50% between the two latest census records.
The original series of 1-2 minute long videos are presented as the centrepoint of the exhibition encapsulating the impressions of the team gathered through visiting 20 of the concerned villages. For the occasion of the
OFF-Biennale
further interviews have been commissioned to provide an additional layer of understanding. The project presented at Telep Gallery stems from a complex collaboration of creative individuals, artists and experts. Appreciating that the original project wasn’t created for artistic purposes, the fact that it is now displayed in an exhibition context aims to contribute to prevalent debates of contemporary art.




Curated by Zsuzsanna Stánitz


Máté Bartha, Csilla Orosz – interviews


Árpád Szigeti – publication (Hurrikan Press)


Kristóf Kovács – coordination (Telep Gallery)


Márk Bartha – sound




'The Back of Beyond' was produced by


Máté Bartha – director, cameraman


Zoltán Ká – cameraman


Krisztián Simon B. – interviewer


Csilla Orosz – video editor


Olivér Lebhardt – editor 


Ábris Gryllus – art director


Márk Bartha – music


VS.hu, 2014




In collaboration with


Mátyás Demeter, Ádám Szedlák, István Kormos, Szabolcs Szabó (ELTE), Tibor Béres (Autonomia Foundation), László Jeney (Corvinus University)




The exhibition is part of the OFF-Biennale Budapest.