Our Past In The Present is an annually organized event in conjunction with the national celebration day of folk costumes. Last year, a Hungarian girl, Dóra Hrágyel, started a private initiative through social media to spread the word to celebrate the day via the Internet. She conceived an event and named it to Our Past In The Present – One Day In Folk Costumes what has influenced many Hungarians all around the world. The point of the movement is not to wear a whole traditional costume (of course you can if you want to) but to have any pieces of folk costumes on you this day.
So what’s the story of the idea? Dóra was visiting one of her friends who was sewing a folk costume. When she had fit it on her, she recognized it looks cool with her jeans and she got the idea: it would be nice to go to work in this mixed style of clothes. Last year, she advertised the revival movement on Facebook and organized a folkdance flashmob in the center of Budapest at Deák Ferenc tér.
This year on the 24-25th of April, many of those interested joined to the online community and the folk revival movement. Hungarians from all over the world sent and posted group pictures and selfies in traditional clothing to the event’s Facebook page. Office workers went to work in folk costumes, teachers involved their classes, etc. After the success of the first event in 2015, the closing flashmob was held on Deák tér in central Budapest this year too.
Dance groups, classes and individuals posted pictures on the event’s Facebook page from Toronto (Canada), Los Angeles (USA), Vienna (Austria) thorugh Brno (the Czech Republic) to several places across the Carpathian Basin such as Szováta (Romania), Pozarevac (Serbia), Ózd, Kaposvár and Budapest (Hungary).
If you missed to dress up in your great-grandmothers skirts or wear your oldschool hats, don’t worry, next year on the 24th of April, you can celebrate the day of folk costumes and send the page your selfie.
To check out the posts and selfies click here!
photos: Tamás Borbola; facebook.com/Múltunk-a-jelenben