This renowned summer camp is the best known event of Hello Wood, a multicultural, multidisciplinary art program. In the frame of the camp, excellent designer and architect duos are trying to make their original projects happen with the help of the most talented youngsters, who passed a previous selection. The participants not only that have to pay an entry fee, but it is an oversubscribed program every year: in the end 90 architects and designers made the final cut - mostly students and recently graduates - this year, but at least twice as much people applied to participate.
Hand craft and self-confidence
"This inspiring atmosphere helps to create the final version of the plans, but the finished work never looks like that they've imagined" - says Peter Pozsár architect, Hello Wood's founder and curator. "It is a special opportunity, because in architects’ education it's not common that you see through the whole process with your own two hands, you create with tools, plans, and redegns. Based on the feedbacks, this camp gives a confidence boost to the participants, because they can rely on their experiences, so they will have the courage to take these kinds of jobs alone. Usually they get proposals after they go home, which is a good reference for us, too.”
"The former participants say that the camp and all the work gave important experiences and self-confidence at the same time."
Hello Wood have two important features: the creations are mostly made of wood and they must present connections between art and society. This year's participants (from Spain, Great-Britain, Poland, Germany, Austria and Hungary) worked on one certain topic: CLOSER! They explored how the architects and designers could help to enhance the relationship between nature, mankind and the artificial environment. The Dutch team's Body Bar for instance provides a bar's space where everyone inevitably has to get into contact with each other.
"We want the workshops to produce products and innovations which could be either developed later or used in everyday life. We have already received an inquiry about a mobile wooden house which was part of this year's installation. There are always other projects with huge potentials: exciting architectural experiments are good challenges for the campers. Fortunately, we could choose from many thrilling projects in recent years" - says Péter Pozsár.
Travelling projects
"Overall there are 11 wooden objects and only one made of concrete. We want to find a place for all of them, of course. One of them stays at a bar's yard in Kapolcs, the windmill - which was part of an energy production experiment - stays in Csórompuszta" - says Orsi Janota project manager. "Sziget has always been a great partner of us: this year they bought five pieces, and they will present all of them at the festival. A mobile table is under construction right now; it can be a great platform for creative contents, and 100 people can sit around it. It can be arranged to the form of the Hello Wood logo, and we're planning to use it for a social gourmet program during the Design Week. There are still a few creations left without any kind of offer, but negotiations are already under way for Body Bar."
The 130, later 150 participants couldn't wish for a better location, because this beautiful area of Mother Nature in Csórompuszta is the perfect place for the creative meditative sessions. It almost felt like a small international festival since there were a lot of foreign attendants and the camp's official language was English.
"Let the world come here!"
"Our reputation is great, because we have workshop leaders like the renowned MOOMOO office, the architects of CODA from Barcelona and Gábor Zobóki. We're trying to turn the usual process around, because we want the world to come to us, we don't want to relocate the camp abroad. In a few years we want Hello Wood to develop a reputation, which attracts superstar architects as workshop leaders to Hungary" - says Péter Pozsár about the plans for the future.
