digital video, 05’ 17’’
2026
There were both a literal, physical, and a metaphorical, socio-cultural role and appreciation of the ‘protective’ function of traditional Hungarian wall hanigings (a special form of embroidered tapestry): The physical prevention of contamination also served to preserve social and gender roles, expectations, and hierarchies, and to create a visual and symbolic representation of an ideal, unchanging world.
At the same time, in addition to their role in setting norms and defining boundaries, these wall hangings also functioned as the voice and communal representation of oppressed communities—primarily members of the household, housewives, and daughters. The often ironic, teasing texts drew attention to invisible labor, the exclusionary nature of social expectations, and the fact that what was believed to be unchangeable and a given was, in fact, contingent. Thus, beyond their symbolic and visual appearance—which seemed to embody a conservative worldview—they also served as important tools for resistance and social criticism.
In our video, we take a slow drive along a main road in Cered to give a break to the figures who have long been standing guard on the wall hangings, and set them free, let them wander around freely. Their naivety, we know, is not ignorance, and their commitment to their values and perspectives is evident both in their free movement and in their ability to go somewhere even while standing still, just as much as in their rigid, two-dimensional, motionless vigilance.