The Kaleidoscope,or the ability to see the beauty is an ideology that is getting more popular in the city, among the citizens who live on the left side of the Danube and among those contemporary artist and art lovers who live and work in other counrties (such as Italy, Spain, The United Kingdom, Germany,Turkey and further cities in Slovakia)
In 2010 the president of the Eurohid Euro-Kisrégiós Foundation decided to follow the ideology of the Kaleidoscope House and started supporting the art program of it. The foundation helped and supported the House from that very moment when it opened its gates.
The House (that has a special mission) started to be surrounded by those who had the same ideas about the state of the city, the purifying strenght of art and community. Painters, sculptors, artist, photographers, clothing and jewellery designers, graphic artist, philosophers and teachers, naturpaths and psychologists, doctors and monks, musicians are all working hard to rebuild faith among the citizens of Esztergom, and to make this city a livable and recipient place to live in. The ideology was born in a ruined 200 years old house, where the artist left the place untouched before, they only put their creations in it. In the first year in this two storey house there were only periodic exhibitions in the 20 little rooms of it.
In the second year, from Spring the gates of the House were always opened, with the garden, a stage in the garden and with the Artbistro. There were two exhibitons every month (one with an artist from Esztergom and one with another hungarian artist), also there were other permanent programs (such as the filmclub, drawing class and yoga class), there were several performances and courses too. We created the image of the House, the homepage and other web availabilities, there were plenty aritcles about the work that goes on in the House. In the summer of 2011 we worked together with the Piknik Art Festival, the slovakian Forma Festival, and a month long art colony took place in the House.
The first exhibitons were basically created by self-organized groups, they were rarely opened in the 400 years old real estate in Viziváros.
Piknik Festival filled the House with the artwork besides the plenty other programs (yoga class and child courses etc.) that had been going on in the House. Artist came here from other countries, eg.: the street artists Aris and Achille (IT) and the conceptual artis Penny Rafferty (UK). The closing exhibiton of the artcolony was organized by Andráskó Péter (who was the art director back then). Because of the Piknik Festival and the competitons linked to it, we needed prewritten programs, so organizing the programs became more and more the task of the community . The attendance of the House started to grow, more artists came here to exhibit their work. Around this time the group started to expand with new creative co-workers. The painter Szuharevszki Mihály and graphic artist Ducsai Péter also joined to help the work of the Kaleidoscope House, after that the House started to achieve its final image. There was an exhibition of the painer Kaci Simon, who organized programs in April,2012.
When it started to be a lot of work to communicate, to create the invitations, the solution was a new, 2 gallery system. The purpose was (and still is) to shake up the cultural life in Esztergom and in the surrounding cities. This purpose gave the idea to organize new exhibitons every other week. One of the galleries gave an opportunity to the citizens to express themselves and the other gallery was created for those invited artist, who shared a view of the cultural life in other countries. There was an exhibition of Nalan Kumlali, turkish painter, who was escorted by the ambassador of Turkey.
In this moment the huge portfolio of the House is still expanding, by this portfolio we organize presentation material that we can show in other countries. In June, 2012 we were in CAOS Gallery Venice(IT) by the organization of Kaci Simon, later this year in Rovás Gallery Kassa(SK) by the organization of Őry Katalni, Szuharevkszi Mihály and Gép Katalni. From September 2012 our purpose was to organize other festivals,interdisciplinary exhibitions and performances, to start competiton-based residency programs.
Our first guest artist was an anatomist and painter from Heifelberg, Eni Manz, whose exhibiton was followed by an indiviual performance. Judith Siedersbergeg and Rosa Brunner, who came from Bamberg, the twin city of Esztergom; were here for two weeks within our residency program. On the 20th anniversary of the Bamberg-Esztergom relationship the Danube Museum organized and exhibition of their work.In the spring of 2013 Katherin Gáll, swiss opera singer was our guest for a month, who organized the main performance of Kadelidoscope Mező Fesitval, she was one of the project manager and spiritual mother of the performance about the Saint George Legend.(Being Spring)
Spirituality in the House
It wasn’t only the multimedia that was an important part of the ideology of the House, but the body-soul-spirit as a human unity and the pursuit of the harominy during the everyday life. The big exhibition room gace place to a yoga class 2 times a week and there were different performances every month (eg.: Neuru Linguistic Programming with Melocco János, „New Tribes” with Murányi Péter), there were group therapies (Sorsfonal Családállítás with Melocco Anna), and we had a chance to meet religious views (Franciscan studies, Zen meditaion with Tokár János, Szunyim am Csong)
Theater and Literature in the House
The big exhibiton room had various functions from the beginning. Several theater events (Jim Morrison Night-by Klubszínpad, A Mutatvány Balabbé ), literature nights and book exhibitions took place there.
Art programs in the House
The most important is the Artist Resideny Program. Whithin this program we took in several hungarian and foreign artist to live in the House for a maximum 1 month long period, to work and create here. Every summer we organize an art camp for children, during this one week the children learn a lot about art with many teachers and artist every day, and after lunch every afternoon they take trips, sport and play together. On the last day the group show and tell their experience of the camp to their parents.
The local creative youth in the House
We may call them the new generation of Kaleidoscope. They are the ones who help the work of the House with their work,enthusiasm and persistence. They play the instruments,sing, dance, paint, take care of the children, paint the chairs, make the coffe, or manage the sound system…anyway the thing is: they belong here. (Tóth Pál Attila, Kertész Kinga, Kanász Nikolett, Iván Zsuzsanna, Huszthy Cecília, Szabó Cseke Mózes, Hangya Bálint, Sándorovszky Brigitta, Varjú Krisztián, Eckl Kata, Tamási Diána.)
Live music in the House
One of the main activities of the House is music, the live shows and concerts are held on every Friday, from spring to fall in the garden stage, from autumn to spring in the 100 years old stonecave beneath the House. From the summer of 2011 the House has its own sound system. Some of the artist from the past years: Manivolanti, Layanda, Úzgin Űver, Jóvilágvan, Ethnofil, Carbovaris, Mörön, Cirkusz-Ka, Meszecsinka, The Durgas, Salchi Papas, Wakachuka, Colombre Band, Borsörmester, PPUE, Marshmallow, The Corny, The Black Nail Cabaret, Ez a Divat, Szegő Jazz quartet, Montanaro Duo, Dokkerman & The Turkeying Fellaz, Lovasi András és Leskovics András, The Third Plane.
