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The Gödör Klub, which presents a diverse range of grass roots cultural programming, hosted a two-day event this weekend to raise awareness about the plight of The Art Pool Art Research Centre .

ArtPool has its roots in Hungary’s early 70’s underground avante garde art scene. It started in 1970 as a series of art exhibitions held in György Galántai’s summer studio, and continued until they were closed down by the police in 1973. The core group of artists re-emerged in 1979 as Artpool. Its goal was to provide Hungarian artists with information on the international art scene, while also publicising and documenting the work of Hungarian artists not in line with the cultural status quo of the day. In spite of periodical banning by the officials (or perhaps because of it) ArtPool managed to accumulate a unique archive, and today houses over 300 meters of archival shelving!

History has a funny way of repeating itself, and ArtPool’s existence is once again being threatened, but this time by having its funding frozen. It currently has funds enough to see it through till the end of December, but after that there is a big question mark.

So, in true anarchistic style, they had a party and invited everybody to come down to the Gödör Klub - which has its own political cross to bear- and find out what they are all about. An installation of quotations sympathetic to the philosophy of the centre, printed in bold black letters on large white, billboard size cards, provided the setting for screenings of archival films, round table discussions, poetry performances, and underground music from the 70’s and 80’s performed by key players from the scene including ef Zambo and the Happy Dead Band, Bárdos Deák Ági, and Müller Péter Sziámi. Sound and performance poet Szkárosi Endre even did one of his rare performances. The place was packed and buzzed with the chatter of old friends meeting, acquaintances being renewed, or new contacts being made.