How Central European Fashion Week of Budapest went Emerging through fashion

Traditional craftsmanship and modern design are the hallmarks of Budapest Central European Fashion Week (BCEFW), which ended in the Hungarian capital on 6 February. The eleventh edition of the event took place in various historic locations in Budapest, places that recall the splendor of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy and a national identity swept away by the Soviet Union, presented in a new light to an international audience of industry experts: the National Dance Theatre, the Hungarian National Museum, the Ethnographic Museum and the ELTE University Library and Archives. 15 Hungarian, 2 Polish, and 2 Slovakian brands were presented, from the most established brands representing Central Europe in the world, such as Nanushka and Aeron, to emerging talents like Odivi, Sentiments, Artista, Elysia, Virag Kereny, Tomcsanyi, Zsigmond Dora menswear, Kata Szegedi, and others. The goal? «To strengthen Budapest's role as a regional destination and the image of the country in general, not only through the creativity of the designers but also through the diversity of the locations,» said Zsófia Jakab, managing director of the Hungarian Agency for Fashion and Design. All this, of course, by offering a deserved space to a new generation of Central European creatives.

But apart from proper consideration, there seems to be a lack of creative cohesion, a solid aesthetic capable of transforming economic and productive support into growth. There is a need for a distinctive and relevant style that can characterize a new Hungarian creative generation that also reinterprets the country's unique cultural heritage to find a narrative that is attractive to international markets, that exports the distinctive features of Hungarian fashion and enters into dialogue with the territory to build a solid and receptive community. For Budapest, as for Copenhagen ten years ago, it is a run-in period, but conditions give hope that the launch is imminent.