Handicraft house in Kiscsősz became a home of exhibitions, trainings and workshops

For twenty years the Élő Forrás Tradition Preservation Association in Kiscsősz has been working on preserving folk traditions, however, proper infrastructure was not available for them to this work. In the 2014-2020 programming period, thanks to funds provided by Széchenyi 2020 programme, the Hunyor Regional Folk Handicraft House was established, in which the association’s programmes found a home.

Since its foundation in 2003, the Élő Forrás Tradition Preservation Association in Kiscsősz has been engaged in the research of Hungarian folk tradition and the authentic transmission of our cultural values. A settlement in the county of Veszprém, with a mere hundred people became a location of international interest for small community festivals, despite the fact that the association did not have proper infrastructure and the situation of their background institutions was a constant problem. However, the association successfully applied for funding deriving from Human Resources Development Operational Programme (HRDOP), which supported the improvement of infrastructure developments of the community’s cultural institutions and organisation system.

Thus, the Hunyor Regional Folk Handicrafts Creative House was built between 2017 and 2020, where learning, creative and service spaces were established. The facility is located next to the Kiscsőszi Interactive Village Museum, therefore, in its immediate surroundings, you can find all the conditions necessary for conducting trainings, camps, and folk art festivals.

The goal of establishing a regional folk handicraft workshop, which is located along the Hunyor patak, was to create a community space that is nurturing the folk culture and presenting the disappearing peasant culture. Six workshops have been established presenting different crafts such as leather decorating, pottery, blacksmithing, weaving and wood carving and which also has a chandlery. In addition, an exhibition hall, an indoor oven and an outdoor community space were created during the project, but funds were also available for the construction of a warehouse space and a new office.

In the new premises, prominent representatives of the Hungarian creative arts dating back to the historical past have found a home, where they continue preserving the folk tradition to this day. Since the working processes can already be presented, the development has given the association significant help in promoting almost forgotten, sometimes thousands of years old handicrafts which once were parts of everyday life. Moreover, by including education among the association’s activities, it also plays a huge role in the survival of these ancient occupations and in the transmission of local values.

Opened in March 2020, the Hunyor Regional Folk Handicraft Creative House can become the cultural base of the area in the long run, strengthening its already recognized position. Exhibitions, adult trainings, children’s activities, craft trainings, workshops, educational trips and community events take place here. Therefore, the investment has a huge role in promoting folk tradition and increasing the appreciation of folk crafts and values among adult population, preschool and school children.