“Hence it is not in the least superstitious, it is even a counsel of realism, to look for the unforeseeable and unpredictable, to be prepared for and to expect “miracles” in the political realm. And the more heavily the scales are weighted in favor of disaster, the more miraculous will the deed done in freedom appear.” Hannah Arendt, in What is Freedom?

60 years ago, on October 23, Hungarians took to the streets to fight for freedom and captured the world's imagination. Hungarians and Hungarian communities today are preparing to celebrate the revolution of 1956 and salute its heroes all around the world. This anniversary is one of Hungary’s most significant National Holidays, but also a world historical event: a true revolution, accomplished by people seeking liberty and setting themselves free in the process; uncovering the character of totalitarian oppression and destroying the political credit of Stalinism and existing varieties of Marxism-Leninism in the eyes of the world. Hungary’s 1956 Revolution was not the product of the Cold War, of military and economic power struggle between superpowers, but the triumph of universal values like self-determination, freedom, and democracy articulated by individuals rising to action.

On the occasion of the 60th Anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, Glowing Bulbs Visual Arts Collective, together with the Hungarian Cultural Center and the Hungarian Consulate General in New York are engaging in a major undertaking by bringing the legacy of the revolution and its universal message to New York City in the form of a large scale video mapping installation, to be projected onto the Manhattan Bridge in DUMBO, Brooklyn on the nights of October 21, 22 and 23. DUMBO as an area has emerged as one of New York City's premier arts districts, with a cluster art of galleries and not-for-profit institutions, home to hundreds of artists and creatives. Presented in collaboration with the DUMBO Improvement District and New York City DOT the projection takes place in DUMBO, Brooklyn, right at the heart of the city’s most important video mapping scene where the DUMBO Arts Festival, Photoville, the Light Year programming and the Light and Sound Art extravaganza regularly take place alongside several related ongoing art projects.

In the course of these nights, towering above the Pearl Street Triangle at a height over 90 feet, a projection area of 15000 square feet will be covered by 6 projectors combining 132,000 lumens of light. The video mapping piece Unity by Glowing Bulbs created especially to commemorate the Hungarian Revolution will be projected to the bridge daily from 7-10pm. 
Unity intends to give audiences a feel of what it was like to be oppressed during the 1950s in Hungary and in the Soviet occupied Eastern Bloc - leading up to the uprising in 1956. The piece goes on to depict the events of the revolution in an abstracted manner to explore the miracle of individuals gaining political consciousness, joining together in order to make their voices heard, and to make a stand against oppressing powers. Their power is captured in a host of triumphant animations about the ability of the multitude to claim liberty, break down the artificial vestiges of power and "open up" spaces of freedom. These final images refer to the days instantly following the uprising pull us back to reality and remind us what freedom can mean for us humans, and what we are able and capable of doing to gain freedom against oppression. 

Glowing Bulbs as a visual arts collective, specializing in video mapping and lights manipulation has decades of experience in creating large scale artistic video pieces. Established in 1998, the collective evolved from the vibrant underground art scene of Budapest, Hungary. Today, they continue to play an important role in the Hungarian visual art world enlisting diverse techniques and media to create complex and coherent works. Frequently, Glowing Bulbs experiments with projecting moving images to create virtual environments and fields of narration.

Since its founding, Glowing Bulbs has created and presented over a hundred independent, large scale artistic mapping pieces and panoramic projections. Their work has complemented theatrical events, dance and literary performances, techno parties and countless cultural festivals worldwide, and has been exhibited at festivals, galleries and museums throughout Hungary, The United States, China, England, Spain, France, Belgium, Germany, Poland, Austria, Slovakia, Slovenia and Romania. Their mission from the very beginning has been to explore the possibilities of artistic reflection and exploration of subjects, rather than the creation of visually pleasing stock animation. As members reflect on their work, in the case of "video installations, the projections are more than visual elements per se. Viewers are given the space to freely interpret these situations and explore their own individual narratives within the frames of perception". 

Project Support
Unity is created by the Glowing Bulbs; presented by Consulate General of Hungary in New York and the Hungarian Cultural Center in New York and is made possible by the DUMBO Improvement District, VER, New York City DOT, 3_Search, the Leo Kuelbs Collection, BK Venues, Brooklyn Expo Center, Parklee and Green Desk. Sponsored by the 1956 Hungarian Revolution and Freedom Fight 60th Anniversary Memorial Board.

Source: http://www.newyork.balassiintezet.hu