Kapolna

Basic information

Project Title

Kapolna

Full project title

The sacred co-place of the future

Project Description

KÁPOLNA is a creative co-space. A unique spot for private silence and secret noise. An exclusively designed venue for solo exhibitions and nanoevents such as workshops, showroom and boutique programsKÁPOLNA is a community. A meeting point for innovative and collaborative minds, who are helping each other by their personal impact and searching for new collaboration possibilities between economic, social, business and art initiatives KÁPOLNA is a carefully curated new media art collection

Project Region

Budapest, Hungary

EU Programme or fund

Description of the project

Summary

KÁPOLNA means CHAP-EL / ˈtʃæpəl / verb

to maneuver over the waves until the wind can be recovered on the original track

KÁPOLNA is located at Pasarét, in a particular green neighbourhood on the Buda side of Budapest. It’s founded by two private persons Réka Matheidesz creative entrepreneur and Tímea Tóth interior designer. The small building was once a real chapel, now it serves as a physical space for innovative facilities. As a small independent grass-root community place it is devoted to special creative services. Its uniqueness can be best described by CO-CONCEPT.

CO-SPACE-SUSTAINABILITY

COMMUNITY-INCLUSIVENESS

KÁPOLNA is a community. A meeting point for innovative and collaborative minds, who are helping each other by their personal impact and searching for new collaboration possibilities between economic, social, business and art initiatives. The Community enjoys the right to rent art pieces from Kápolna Collection while also have the possibility to use the venue for community purposes.

COLLECTION-AESTHETICS

KÁPOLNA is a carefully curated new media art collection of Hungarian and international sound, audio and light designers’ works which are temporary on view in the space and rentable for the members of the community. The collection also serves as the core of the business model. It gives opportunities to the Kápolna community to be able to rent art pieces as part of the creative services of the Kápolna.

Key objectives for sustainability

Our project overall objective is to put cultural heritage into value in the spirit of sustainability, aesthetics and inclusiveness. But it also aims at demonstrating how spaces can be used for positive exchanges and community-building and an inspirational model that combine style with a strong social purpose and sustainability.

The specific objectives of the project are multiple fold:

to reuse and give new purpose for the beautiful old small Chapel in a sustainable way

The Kápolna was neglected and used as a storage in the last 50 years. In 2019 two women decided to purchase the place from own sources and turn it into a small but inclusive innovative art and community centre. It took 8 months to refurbish and respect its original values and turn the original features the place into a valuable and unique small hub. Sustainability and the preservation of the heritage was the main criteria while doing the renovation works

to create a platform for media artists and connect them to a sustainable local and business community

Using a common platform for media artists gives opportunity to the artists to connect to their own community and use the platform as a communication/commercial6community platform to sell their artworks within the local and business community while enabling a strong and sustainable community building process.

to create a novel sustainable business model for the community place

An innovative business model is a core element for creating sustainable eco-system.

Key objectives for aesthetics and quality

Aesthetics and art is a horizontal criteria which has been kept all throughout project planning and preparation:

Venue: Kápolna was once a Chapel, therefore has some beautiful original features, which we have kept. Ornaments on the ceiling and the original windows are all unique beautiful features. One of the founders Timea Toth is an interior designer who has kept aesthetics as a key driver for renovations.

Use: The mission of the venue if to bring media art closer to the local community by permitting a renting option which is affordable for everyone. With this democratic gesture art becomes affordable for all members while the artist can also find a sustainable living through the platfom. Bringing art, thus aesthetics closer to people is also a mission of spreading aesthetics

Art: Several art events have been organized each representing a strong aesthetic value. An exhibition of the digital painter Bori Mako, or the media design Szigeti G. Csongor are all examples of the exclusive role of art and aesthetics for the Kápolna. PULSE interactive art and technology installation by EJTECH in the framework of the Budapest Design Week. https://www.kapolna.org/news.

Key objectives for inclusion

Use: The mission of the venue is to bring media art closer to the local community by permitting a renting option which is affordable for everyone. With this democratic gesture art becomes affordable for all members while the artist can also find a sustainable living through the platfom. Bringing art, thus aesthetics closer to people is also a mission of spreading aesthetics

Community building: Kápolna has managed to set up a local and international community in just a few month under COVID-19, Building on the local communities and linking local, business and art communities qualify for a strong inclusive strategy as the core concept.

Business model: The mission of the venue is to bring media art closer to the local community by permitting a renting option which is affordable for everyone. With this democratic model art becomes affordable for all members of the community.

Results in relation to category

Our project is a good example for both cultural heritage that has been put into value in the spirit of sustainability, aesthetics and inclusiveness. But also a inspirational example of how spaces can be used for positive exchanges and community-building and an inspirational model of community hub that combine style with a strong social purpose and sustainability.Main impacts:

Reuse a historical unique building in a forward looking innovative way for community building using media art and interior design as main selling points
Activate local, business and art communities. 500 local community members, 15 media artists and 10 businesses have been involved.
Set up an inspirational and sustainable business and operational model by linking art-local communities and business communities with each other

How Citizens benefit

The core objective of the project was to involve local communities of the neighborhood through art driven activities and a design led community place. This neighborhood is especially unique in a way that it is residential and does not possess many community spaces. Micro events and community initiatives are therefore much needed and very welcomed by the inhabitants. The community is the driving force of the platform as there are the main beneficiaries of the art acquisitions and the community events. The community is also key to the sustainable business model as most initiatives are financed by community funding

Innovative character

The innovation character lies in the Co-Concept and its integrated approach. It equally addresses sustainability, inclusion and aesthetics in an innovative way:

CO-SPACE-SUSTAINABILITY

COMMUNITY-INCLUSION

KÁPOLNA is a community. A meeting point for innovative and collaborative minds, who are helping each other by their personal impact and searching for new collaboration possibilities between economic, social, business and art initiatives. The Community enjoys right to rent art pieces from Kápolna while also have the possibility to use the venue for community purposes.

COLLECTION-AESTHETICS

KÁPOLNA is a carefully curated new media art collection of Hungarian and international sound, audio and light designers’ works which are temporary on view in the space and rentable for the members of the community. The business model is also innovative, as It gives opportunities to the Kápolna community to be able to rent art pieces as part of the services of the Kápolna while strengthening the community as a whole.