Parallel Hungary

The main goal of the Budapest Photo Festival is to represent Hungarian photography in a way worthy of its rich past, providing space for the introduction of new trends and young talents through exhibition opportunities and public meetings. In this spirit, we launched the call in 2024, which resulted in this rich, diverse exhibition. An exciting selection was created from the large number of images received for the competition, which aims to provide a panoramic view of the present in this temperate climate zone of the northern hemisphere, in Central Europe, on 93,000 km² between the middle Danube and the Carpathian mountain ranges. Streetphotography is one of the most spectacular and inspiring styles in photography. 

Thanks to its popularity and dynamic development, it has now become a leading trend that not only documents reality, but also creates atmosphere from light, shapes, shadows and reflections. The camera only records, reality can be shaped, and therein lies the power of communication. What do we see, however, if the image is free from distortion and ideologies, does not serve any influence, power, or underlying content, but simply documents? Street photography is the most creative tool for capturing the cityscape, which is also a mirror of local and global culture. What do we see if the images show the Hungary we live in and do not show an idealized world?

The photographers of Streetphoto Hungary do not purposefully set up a crooked mirror, they simply document their environment. The sometimes satirical, sometimes poetic end result is put together by the viewers, it means something different to everyone, it is interpreted through the recipient’s own filter, without controlled content, freely, giving a colorful overall picture of the reality surrounding us.

2025.

Curator: Szilvia Mucsy