City Park: Past and Future Inspirations of the Városliget

Széchenyi Baths photo by Andreas Poeschek via Wikipedia

According to the book The Truth About Tesla: The Myth of the Lone Genius in the History of Innovation, Nikola Tesla was on a walk with a Hungarian friend when he had his 'eureka' moment and came up with the idea for the brushless polyphase AC generator. It is not surprising that his companion was Hungarian, as the two were strolling in Budapest’s Városliget, or City Park. The park has meant a lot to residents and visitors alike, and is home to Gundel, Budapest’s most illustrious historical restaurant, as well as the Széchenyi Baths, the city’s (if not Europe's) most famous thermal bath complex.

So, when the government put plans in place to renovate the park, there was some push back. A number of locals who used the park wanted it kept as it was, worried that the construction of new museums would change the character of the public space, which is a World Heritage Site. But resistance has dwindled as results have begun to surface. Moreover, now that construction is complete on some of the new features, the worry that it will merely exist to serve tourists is being appeased. For example, a 200 meter running track, complete with a long jump and two new basketball/football courts were recently opened for free public use. Until this summer, there was no designated running path in the park, like there is on Margit Sziget, the city’s other great park.

While construction on many of the museums planned for the space has only begun, we have been treated to some advance renderings of the soon-to-be erected Hungarian Music House. Designed by renown Japanese architect Sou Fujimoto, the space will feature exhibitions of the history of Hungarian music, a multimedia music library, an indoor concert hall, as well as an outdoor stage, all housed in a modern, sleek building. When you watch the video, it is hard not to agree that this will be an improvement on the existing abandoned ruin.

Joining the music house will be the Museum of Ethnography and the National Gallery, both of which will be housed in newly constructed avant garde buildings. The renovation is turning out to be an internationally minded endeavour with Hungary at its heart. Only time will tell if it will inspire future Teslas into world-changing inventions. That’s a lot to ask. In the meantime, art, music, and some fitness will have to do.

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