Award-winning Hungarian photographer and head of the MOME photography department, Ábel Szalontai, had an exhibition last spring at the Veszprém Dubniczay Palace titled Basacsony, in connection with a photo book publication under the same name. Basacsony refers to the region on the north shore of Lake Balaton in western Hungary where the peculiarly shaped basalt mountains meet the waterfront, and all its unique and rare plant and animal life.
The 80 images in my Badacsony series are a photographic project selected from more than 4,000 images, creating a process of observation and reflection.
The Badacsony series is the result of the photographer’s personal attachment to the Balaton area, as Szalontai has visited the place since his childhood, even stating this is where he learned to walk. Capturing the same landscape again and again for eight years Szalontai manages to build an incredible insight into a view that was there before us and will be there long after. Through repetition, the viewer is guided to immerse oneself beyond the top visual layer, digging deeper into the meaning and underlying content.
“The 80 images in my Badacsony series are a photographic project selected from more than 4,000 images, creating a process of observation and reflection. Besides the exhibited images, the book of the same title is the essence of the series, which was one of the featured exhibitions of the European Capital of Culture 2023 Veszprém last May.” The photographer writes.
I came across the paper chosen for the book at the Creative Club event and decided at first sight that Garda Matt Rough paper would give the best end result. The technical specification of the photographs and the challenge of matching the printing process to the quality of the paper used justified my choice.
The painterly aesthetic of the photograph series is stunningly reproduced in the photo book that so well captures the idea and power of repetition. A subject that seems so personal to the photographer is showcased in such a way that it breaks away from personal and becomes experiential to the viewer. This comes especially tangible in the exhibition as well as the photo book.
The grey-green textile-covered book, created in collaboration with Hungarian graphic designer Anna Farkas, presents 72 photographs in a unique landscape format printed on Garda Matt Rough paper with the spine running on the longer side. “I came across the paper chosen for the book at the Creative Club event and decided at first sight that Garda Matt Rough paper would give the best end result. The technical specification of the photographs and the challenge of matching the printing process to the quality of the paper used justified my choice.” The artist concludes.
The images are accompanied by short texts by Attila József prize-winning poet Iancu Laura, as well as two essays by philosopher József Tillmann and architectural critic and visual environment researcher Krisztine Somogyi.
Images © Oravecz Istvan
Images © Dávid Biró