Budapest Design Week: WAMP

Although I’m here in Budapest for research, when we have a spare moment my Mom and I have been exploring and seeing things beyond the usual Budapest tourist attractions.  Since we’ve both been here before a few times – and we’re here for month, not weeks – it’s been really exciting to delve more into Budapest’s art and culture scene.  We were so luck to be here for Budapest Design Week’s art markets and design fairs.  One of the fairs we perused was WAMP, which is actually a monthly event but was a little extra special to coincide with Design Week.  For starters, they moved to a gorgeous building:

My eyes kept wandering up to the ceiling . . .

Although the hand crafted wares were pretty eye catching too.!! From cute felted wool place mats to handmade leather bags and shoes, there was an incredible variety of really unique things.  A little overwhelming, almost.  Hungary has some incredibly talented and inventive artisans and makers that you won’t really be exposed to at the usual tourist spots.  But I snapped a few photos to bring you along!

So what did we buy?  We actually exercised a lot of self restraint!  For one, the money kind of goes fast because I’m paying a mortgage at home and rent while I’m here researching.  But also we’re here for months and I worry about not having space to bring everything home.  But we couldn’t resist a couple of little Budapest souvenirs from WAMP!  Mom bought the painting below.  The artist (Gerebecz, Nandor) had painted it the night before and was so excited Mom loved it so.  The painting is of a street in Budapest, with St. Stephen’s Basilica in the background.  Nandor painted from a photograph he took (and gave us each a magnet with the photograph on it as a gift).

This version (we think it’s made with a stencil and layers of paint, because they’re so similar) was also really cool, in a much more bold colorway:

I have been looking to buy stuff I “need”: stuff that I would buy at home and use daily, not impulse tourist finds I’ll fall out of love with or never use (been there, done that).  Because my cellphone case was falling apart (plus this lame blackberry one was the only one I could find to fit my HTC wildfire phone) I was in search of a handmade leather phone case.

After being scared away by $45.00 handmade leather cases elsewhere, I was nervous about even asking prices at WAMP.  But I found a coral leather case I loved, by Berecz Vanda, and tentatively asked.  Guess how much it was?  $5.00!!  I thought I had moved the decimal point over incorrectly (it was 1000 HUF – I cannot get used to spending these giant sums).  The quality and style beats any of the cases I had previously drooled over.  And you cannot beat $5.00.

It seriously looks like it was made to match my phone.

The woman who makes them also designs gorgeous purses.  Mom is contemplating buying one and I think I am going to buy a spare case – this time coral with turquoise leather lining (see last photo).  Aren’t we good?  We each bought one thing we really liked.  Which was really tough, but with all of the other design fairs, we knew some restraint was necessary.  Okay UPDATE: my Mom did buy a purse, and I’m so jealous!  They’re sculptural little works of art.  And we visited the artist in her studio, which is her apartment.  How she can make such beautiful things from her tiny space amazes me!

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And yes, I did buy a second phone case.  It’s so cute, it can be used for other things too and I just loved the aqua lining.

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