In Circulation: Romani Design
Reflections of Contemporary Designers on the Collection of the Museum of Applied Arts
We launched the series of seasonal exhibitions entitled In Circulation in the Hungarian Museum of Applied Arts’ György Ráth Villa in 2018, with the primary aim of keeping our collections in motion and further developing them.
According to our concept, the invited designer will select an object or ensemble of objects from the collection of the Museum of Applied Arts, and will create a new design as inspired by the object(s). The ambition of the exhibition is for the museum to spark a design process which would not have been possible without the object(s) selected from the museum’s collections. The design object(s) born from the inspiration of the museum’s collection will also become a part of the collection, which will also provide the opportunity for further relations and exhibitions.
Our fifth invited artist in the series is Romani Design is the world’s first Roma fashion studio. It is the mission of the sisters, Erika Varga and Helena Varga, who founded the studio in 2010, to help build the socio-cultural prestige of the Roma with the tools of fashion and applied arts.
With their handmade design products, they place authentic Roma national dresses into a contemporary context. In their collections, they are inclined to combine Roma and Hungarian folklore elements, as the two cultures have been integrally connected for centuries.
The sisters chose a total of six art objects from the collections of the museum. It is not by chance that these are all devotional pictures depicting either the Virgin Mary or other female saints, which provided the inspiration for the designers to create six enchantingly richly patterned women’s garments and coordinated accessories.
In circles of Roma of Roman Catholic and Orthodox denominations, devotional objects and the cult of the Virgin Mary play an important role. According to their presumptions, their veneration for the Virgin Mother may be interwoven with the cult of the primordial Roma Mother-Goddess.
The profane interpretation of the Virgin Mary as the Holy Mother can be correlated with the family-, community-, and child-centrism within Roma culture, and the sacredness of motherhood. These motifs take on an emphatic role in the Romani Design garments and jewellery inspired by the museum’s devotional images.
'Celebration' skirt with top
This ceremonial, long white skirt and three-quarter coat decorated with white tulle at the shoulder embody Celebration. The reproductions of two selected art objects are also encountered on the dress: the gilt silver pendant with a depiction of the Virgin Mary at the centre, as well as the 18th-century devotional image of Madonna and Child in a limewood frame.
Paradise on Earth' skirt with top by dr. Beatrix TormaMuseum of Applied Arts, Budapest
'Paradise on Earth' skirt with top
According to the beliefs of the
designers, Paradise on Earth can
come into our lives if we preserve
the purity of our soul, which is
visualised by the strips of white
lace that traverse the traditional
Roma rose motifs. With this dress, the creators pay their respects to the traditional values they have inherited from their family.
Church' dress by dr. Beatrix TormaMuseum of Applied Arts, Budapest
'Church' dress
The first dress evoking the robes of a Byzantine Empress carries the name Church, for which the designers applied the iconlike portraits of their mother and maternal grandmother into the pattern. The creators view both women as role-models, and as important points of alignment in the life of their family. Its title refers to the sanctity of the family, and to the bonds of the family and the ancestors, which also indicate the similarly sacred connection to religion.
Church' dressMuseum of Applied Arts, Budapest
Praise to the Virgin Mary can be read in both Latin and Romani language in the gloria encircling their heads.
With the digital design of the colourful flowers framing the face of their grandmother, the floral ornamentation of the museum’s devotional image depicting Saint Cecilia arrived at a new context.
Devotional image - Saint Cecilia (mid 17th century) by Lisebetten van PieterreMuseum of Applied Arts, Budapest
Devotional image - Saint Cecilia
Women’s Emancipation' dressMuseum of Applied Arts, Budapest
'Women’s Emancipation' dress
At the same time, alongside following tradition, it is at least as important to them to, taking their own path, apply the innovations of our time. This is symbolised in their garment named Women’s Emancipation.
In the upper portion of the dress, the Varga sisters applied portraits of their mother and grandmother.
Devotional image (Spitzenbild) (circa 1730) by unknownMuseum of Applied Arts, Budapest
Devotional image - St. Francis of Rome with its the guardian angel (18th century) by unknownMuseum of Applied Arts, Budapest
Women’s Emancipation' dressMuseum of Applied Arts, Budapest
The underlying pattern of the skirt can be found in the Museum's collection with the icon of the Benediction of the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore.
Devotional image - with a depiction of the Blessed Virgin Mary (late 18th century) by unknownMuseum of Applied Arts, Budapest
Innocence' dress by dr. Beatrix TormaMuseum of Applied Arts, Budapest
'Innocence' dress
The colour and the pattern of the garment symbolises the heavenly Paradise and the innocence of the one arriving to Heaven, hence the name Innocence.
Innocence' dressMuseum of Applied Arts, Budapest
The puckish cherub flying
about the gentle portrait of their
grandmother on the white skirt
is none other than the younger
brother of the designers.
The portrait of their grandmother has been crowned, with a “gypsy cart wheel” at its peak, which is the symbol of both the rising and setting Sun, as well as continuous rebirth.
Blessing' skirt with top by dr. Beatrix TormaMuseum of Applied Arts, Budapest
'Blessing' skirt with top
The final dress was christened Blessing, which refers to the blessings we have received from our families.
Blessing' skirt with topMuseum of Applied Arts, Budapest
The portraits of their mother and grandmother also recur in the golden crucifix.
Womenswear - "Celebration" skirt with top documentary photo of the Roma Saint’s Day, CsatkaMuseum of Applied Arts, Budapest
Documentary photo of the Roma Saint’s Day, Csatka
This project also provided an opportunity to initiate a new form of collecting in the Contemporary Design Department.
We decided to take part in the Roma Saint’s Day that takes place every year in Csatka (HU) where, according to tradition, the Roma believers sew vestments as a benefaction to the statue of the Holy Virgin, which are changed every hour.
Commissioned by the museum, the designers also created a vestment for the Csatka Holy Virgin. This garment, however, was not acquired by the museum in its physical form, we rather archived photos about the piece and the dressing was recorded in a video.
Roma tradition and folklore practically breathes through the garments of Romani Design. Every piece is contemporary and authentic. The designers teach us not to be afraid of returning to our own traditions, to dare to take inspiration from them, and to offer them further to the next generations that follow us.
by Judit Horváth, PhD; Melinda Farkasdy; Rita Komporday
Sarolta Sztankovics (ed.)
