We have already written about the Brody House. We have been to the place before. They had a brilliant event in connection with fashion. I think fashion is quite boring, however I’ve been watching the performance tensely for more than two hours. Many things have happened in the club’s life since then. For example they have opened the Brody Studios, their second center which is located in the Vörösmarty utca and not in the Bródy Sándor utca.
I know the post isn’t so interesting yet, but it is worth reading.
So the basics: The Brody House has started its activity with a hotel. No. Let's see what happened earlier. In 2000 two investors William Clothier and Peter Grundberg came to Hungary and they earned a lot of money by investing. The next logical step for them would have been to leave the country and spend the money in an exotic place, but they’ve rather stood here. They were thinking about supporting and keeping the local culture alive so they have decided to give something back from the money they have earned here. This is how they want to make a sensible quality change in Budapest. Formerly people like them were known as ‘mecenates’, but on one hand there are only a few nowadays, who support talented but hungry artists and on the other hand: these people do it in a wrong way. However Clothier and Grundberg know how to do it.
In 2009 they bought the house in the Bródy Sándor utca and they turned one of the floors of the house to the painters and also provided food and accommodation to them so they could calmly create. In exchange for this Clothier and Grundberg asked them to give some money from their revenue to the Brody House after selling a picture. After a while the idea came to open a hotel in the house with unique rooms which are designed by the artists having lived there before. That’s why each and every room is different. Meanwhile the Brody House became a club where artists and their audience can meet. This is not the Opera Ball where the entrance fee takes 100.000 HUF and you simply cannot have deep, meaningful conversations wearing a dress and having a makeup. Here if you are a member of the club (the membership fee is absolutely reasonable) you can easily gain access to the high quality events for only 1000-2000 HUF, where you can talk to people you usually don’t meet.
This kind of development resulted in opening the Brody Studios. You cannot find a hotel in it but you can meet the members of the club, you can see several artists sponsored by the Brody working simultaneously and you can also participate at high quality clubevents just like I did lately.
So the whole thing was about letting people with different cast of thought who love Budapest and culture meet each other, get drunk for free sponsored by Pernod Ricard. So they have the opportunity to think about something together which makes this city a better place. An idea that isn’t so big, just a small idea or thoughts from conversations which can slowly repaint the city.
While people were drinking we visited some artists who were actually working on something. I could meet so many interesting people. I am not a pally type of person I don’t really get closer to others except my nearest and dearest, but here I had the chance to talk about the decline of the national economy with a successful headhunter, I could also meet Thomas the professor from Great Britain, who is doing a research on the Hungarian history sponsored by the Queen. I met the owner of the pornographic penthouse in the Király utca and a successful German businessman who loves living in Hungary and he wouldn't move even despite the depressing circumstances.
During the short conversations I had the chance to get to know Budapest better in such a point of view which is different than mine so it is more realistic. It was an exciting journey and it is really good to have Brody here for us, which sets up the stage and shouts ACTION! Everything else is up to us. And we have a lot to do.
Brody Studios
Budapest, Vörösmarty utca 38.
info@brodyhouse.com
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