"It's good to see people become so motivated that they stop looking at their phones around the table." – Cult-net (in Hungarian: Kultháló) interview with András Rozgonyi, the creator of the Salföldi Bánya (Salföld Mine)
We continue the series on the venues that joined the Cult-net Programme by introducing the Salföld ‘Bánya’, created on the site of the former sand pit next to the Salföld Ponds. The old mill, built on a wild, sandy landscape, is now a restaurant with enormous sun sails and straw bales, creating a unique atmosphere for music, art, and workshops.
The objective of the Cult-net Programme was to provide a venue for events of the Veszprém-Balaton 2023 European Capital of Culture (ECoC) Programme and thus energise the local communities. Tell us about this cooperation: how did the Bánya join this initiative?
We didn't want to create just one more hospitality venue but a welcoming place where locals and visitors could become involved in various programmes. We, therefore, entered into consultations with the VEB2023 ECoC staff, who liked our ideas. We soon found that our goals were identical; they were able to add many suggestions and other perspectives to our thoughts. From the beginning, we wanted to focus on artists and artisans who live nearby, which was excellent common ground for the Cult-net programme.
What are the benefits of joining the Cult-net? Are there noticeable extra results?
Last year was our first year, and we received lovely feedback, which, admittedly, felt very good. Local people came to many programmes, and we also had returning guests. It's good to see people become so motivated that they stop looking at their phones around the table.
What programmes are you preparing for this year?
We're putting together a program from June to September, and we will have several smaller and bigger events every week. The emphasis is on music and visual arts: concerts and workshops are our most frequent events. As far as possible, we design the programmes to make the audience' work"- in other words, participate and become involved - if not always in practice, at least in theory. Here you can sit down with Béla Raffay, a nationally renowned sculptor, and try your hand at sculpting without any previous training. He will be giving a course in plate embossing in the afternoon (4 pm to 6 pm) on 16 July, and a lesson in clay sculpting in August and September. You can also try to play the Jew's harp with Miklós Paizs. Both artists live in the Káli Basin, where we first met them. We have invited many other masters and artists visitors can learn from if they visit us at the Bánya.
But we like to add a little spice even to a bigger concert, a deeper understanding of what is happening. János Vázsonyi, a saxophone player from Pécsely who regularly plays in several bands worldwide, is a regular here. Every two weeks, he invites a guest, and they often play together so the audience can get an insight into music in many ways. The next performance will be on Friday, 1 July at 8 pm, with Ádám Móser, who will talk about the meeting of cultures and demonstrate it by playing the harmonica, the accordion, and by singing chansons.
How do you feel about community life in and around Salföld these days? How could it be improved, and how does the Cult-net programme help?
The total population of Salföld is less than fifty people. The communities are tiny and very closed, but the ties between them are also very firm, and traditions are firmly adhered to. That’s fine, but I think having new and fresh events and happenings is useful. Families and larger groups on excursions often look at our programmes, which complement and support each other. The Káli Basin has already had a lot of visitors, and there will be many more of them in 2023. I believe that no one’s local identity will be damaged by this, but rather open new perspectives. This year, the Bánya commissioned the photographer Miklós Déri to create a series of photographs demonstrating the sometimes-shaky relationship between the original inhabitants and those who only recently moved to the area. He has asked newcomers to choose a “real” indigenous resident to be photographed with at a local scene. Those pictures will record their relationship and how they relate to each other. It is one way to try to get around this particularly sensitive issue.
What makes the Bánya special? What age group/public does it appeal to?
We designed the Bánya with families in mind. We wanted the children to see it as a big playground where they could run around and play freely among the pebbles, in the sand, and among the trees. We’ve created a couple of hundred metres of walking trail by the entrance, a nature trail through the forest, which stands on its own as an adventure. Adults will find exciting activities for themselves or their kids, which may make it worth visiting us instead of going to the beach.
To give you a few examples: on 23 June at 9 pm we will have a Midsummer Night’s walk on our nature trail, and on 30 June at 4 pm there will be an Art Workshop (and not only for children), with an opportunity to paint mandalas under the guidance of Katalin “Cini” Kovács, one of the invited masters of the Kővágóörs House of Culture.
The Bánya is an open-air venue. How do you deal with the unpredictability of the weather? Do you have a plan B for rainy days?
The weather could be a nuisance because we don’t have a lot of covered areas. We plan to have some programs indoors after completing some badly needed renovations, but the present building is unsuitable. In the meantime, we will try to issue rain checks, if we can, for programmes we need to cancel.
What are your ties to Salföld and Balaton?
I've lived here for more than ten years in winter and summer, and I've grown very fond of the landscape and life here. I don't know any other region with such a lively cultural life and tourism. It reminds me a bit of the vibrancy of the capital, but it still has that rural, natural feel that makes life here on a human scale.
