István Puskás: let’s not only care about Debrecen, but also actively work for it – news from Debrecen, news from Debrecen | Debrecen and Hajdú-Bihar county news
István Puskás: let’s not only care about Debrecen, but also actively work for it
Debrecen – We, the people of Debrecen, are lucky because we live in a city with perhaps the strongest local identity in the country – says the deputy mayor. Interview.
On the third weekend of September, our traditionally built heritage will once again be in the spotlight. István Puskás revealed that in Debrecen, it will be more extensive both in time and in terms of themes, it goes beyond the Cultural Heritage Days series. We talked about the deputy mayor responsible for the city’s cultural affairs, the programs and the local identity of Debrecen.
István Puskás
Dehir: The free city history program series of the Térey Book Festival and Cultural Heritage Days almost coincide in time. Can we say that it is almost a continuation?
István Puskás: Or rather about entanglement. After all, the events and topics of the two programs will be closely related, and several common areas will be created. We can safely say that September will be about the cultural heritage of Debrecen, and even more than that, about the identity of the city and our community. This is thanks to the fact that two of Debrecen’s strongest identity-forming values are in the center: literature, and relatedly many elements of Debrecen culture, and the built environment (which is a defining element of every settlement and local identity). When we launched the Térey Book Festival in 2020, this was exactly our goal. After all, we did not only want to commemorate the poet of our city and nation who died tragically young, we not only wanted to bring to life his life work that lives with us and is very current, but
we also wanted to draw attention to the important role literature still plays in the identity of Debrecen. Therefore, on the occasion of every book festival, other authors also “get to speak”, among other things, on the eve of the Book Festival, which is János’ birthday, we will also remember a hundred and tenth birthday, the birthday of Tamás Kiss.
And Cultural Heritage Day is a European initiative whose distinguished goal is to show the continent’s built heritage. When I worked in Rome, I also saw how great an opportunity this was, since the baroque palace of the Hungarian Academy always received serious attention on this day, which could be well exploited.
Dehir: What awaits those interested? Will there be new locations compared to previous years?
István Puskás: This year we are organizing the Book Festival for the third time, the profile of which is shaping up. Part of this is the Térey cult, so the programs will take place in the downtown locations mentioned many times by János, we will lay wreaths in the former “Boldogh House” on Kétmalom Street, there will be a program in the building of the Méliusz Library, located a few steps away, in the House of Literature in the Péterfia on the street, as in previous years, but there will also be new locations. As I mentioned, already part of the introductory program is a commemoration of Tamás Kis at the former apartment building on the 11th, and on the 13th Géza Bereményi, who lives in our town, will be a guest of the Apolló cinema, and the Csokonai Theater is preparing a very exciting performance in the Little Church. Conversations and book presentations similar to previous years form the backbone of the celebration, and the Méliusz Library is preparing to present a national library innovation project. And that brings us to the built heritage: at the book festival, we can finally get our hands on the volume created by Attila Harangi and Viktor Löki on cívis houses, which is much more than architecture, as valuable literary texts have been given a place in it, as well as a photo book.
By the way, the volume is cared for and published by the two main institutions of the entire program series, the Déri Museum and the Méliusz Library. But well before the book festival, a discussion will be held in connection with the architectural history exhibition in the synagogue on Pásti Street, the topic of which will be the specific relationship between the built environment and literature in Debrecen. As for the construction day, as in previous years, the program offer will be richer, for an exemplary grassroots, real civil-civilian initiative.
Activists of the Cívisházakért Facebook group will organize an all-day event on Méliusz tér on the 18th with the involvement of artists, folk artists, local historians, NGOs from the Verestemplom, the Méliusz Library, the archive, the Csokonai Theater.
But beyond this all-day event, September 15. and the 27th, between the night of the churches, several programs, including city walks and conferences, will provide an opportunity to get to know our built cultural heritage.
Dehir: In recent months, our city has been the site of several events where Debrecen was prominently present. We can also think of the Holnemváros exhibition or the programs related to the 100-year-old Debrecen Architectural Archive. The new theater opened with a Magda Szabó original performance. Could it be a coincidence?
István Puskás: No way it is. Debrecen’s identity has been debated in several forums, and in recent times it has been quite systematic. There has been a marked increase in scientific, intellectual and wider audience opportunities. I myself am trying to create as many opportunities, discussions, and platforms as possible on the most diverse topics (because there are many elements of the Debrecen identity beyond the “issues” that are the subject of the current discussion). But more and more valuable publications are multiplying, in book and online form, databases are being built, as
Debrecen is constantly and regularly the subject, not only the location, of the most diverse works of art. All of this together shows how important the city and its community are for many of us – and I hope more of us – and that everyone should actively experience belonging here in their own way.
I trust that, and I myself work to make this active community even wider, so that more and more of us not only care about the city, but also actively do something for it. The community of people is growing, and this can be measured not only by the density of the programs, but also by their diversity and quality.
Dehir: If we look at the social media sites, or even at Dehir’s articles, there is a remarkably high interest in posts and articles about the city’s past and recent past. Is it just nostalgia, or is there more to it?
István Puskás: About much more. For quite some time, the question of identity has been raised more and more prominently in Western culture in the most diverse aspects, in the most diverse approaches, from art to politics and the economy to the most ordinary conversations. The sudden expansion of the world, the rapid expansion of physical and virtual space, in which we all live our lives, brought this.
In a world that is becoming more and more complicated and difficult to understand and interpret, the basic question is who we are as individuals, what is our relationship to important communities, such as family, nation, culture, civilization.
For all its positive aspects, this situation also has many dangerous and frightening aspects. In such cases, the sure points, the sure anchors are appreciated, which we can find very safe, the feeling of being at home in the world can remain. That’s why we talk so much about the importance of the family, about deep-rooted individual – gender – identities based on our civilizational traditions, and that’s why we Debrecen residents are lucky, because we live in this city, in what is probably (in my opinion, definitely) the community with the strongest local identity in the country.
Dehir: Why is being from Debrecen important? What brings up the question of local identity again and again?
István Puskás: The identity of Debrecen, or rather the identity of Debrecen, can create a homely environment, create a community around us, give us something to hold on to from the past, which helps us deal with the challenges of the present and build towards the future.
Dehir: Debrecen’s economy is developing, thousands of new jobs are being created, and the university is also attracting many visitors. What makes the city attractive to them? Why is it important, how do they find a home here, how do they find Debrecen for themselves?
István Puskás: Beyond what kind of living conditions, what quality, standard – health, education, entertainment, shopping, sports, etc. – a city offers settings, it does matter how characterful, how cohesive, solidary and inclusive the community is, where a stranger arrives. Anyone who has had the opportunity to experience what it’s like to live in a foreign environment knows this well. It doesn’t matter what stores we go to shop at, but it’s at least as important what kind of gestures and human relationships surround us, whether a parent smiles at us in kindergarten, or whether the salesperson speaks to us as an acquaintance at the greengrocer.
What a stranger thinks about us, how he lives his daily life here, is not only important for how he feels or what kind of news we bring to the world, but also for ourselves. We will also feel better in our own skin, in our own environment, in our community, if we welcome the stranger who wants to become a useful member of our community. But this is also part of Debrecen’s identity.
The city has always welcomed all those who shared the fundamental values of the community, who wanted to be useful, hard-working citizens, who wanted to grow the city. It is enough to walk along Piac Street, just think about the names of the houses there: Sesztina, Rickl, Kaszanyiczky.
Dehir: Recently, Catherine Gabriel, the new goalkeeper of DVSC Schaeffler, said that while she has been to almost all the restaurants in Debrecen, it is quite difficult to do so in Paris. You can’t argue with that. in contrast, what can we show?
István Puskás: For example, that we are realistic about who we are and how big we are. Of course, we will never be able to compete with a metropolis in terms of the diversity and quality of services, but we know that we offer all the advantages of quality, comfortable, safe, livable city centers. We like to see only the bad in Debrecen, only to notice the lack, but if we go to cities of similar size in Central Europe, or even in Western Europe, we realize that we have nothing to be ashamed of. Obviously, this does not mean that Debrecen is “ready”, we can still improve in many areas – gastronomy, for example. is one such area. We are also talking with the caterers in Debrecen, and I am sure that sooner or later the results of this will become more visible. It is interesting that while you can now eat excellent pizzas here, you can hardly come across local flavors, which is one of the key elements of local identity. We still have a lot to do in this area. Italy is my favorite example. There is no restaurant in Rome, from checkered tablecloths to fine dining, where traditional cuisine is not present, carbonara is offered everywhere, but I can mention Cluj as a closer example, while in our country you have to search a lot for slumbuc, stuffed cabbage…
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