Symphony of Memories
The Symphony of Memories is a living memorial that captures the spirit of the Hungarian icon Mari Törőcsik, and keeps her memory alive for all those who pass by, captivated by the melody of the sound flowers that enliven the actress' roles.
Mari Törőcsik's personality will live on in our collective memory through a performative commemoration and interactive installation that captures her acting and film roles, as well as her community-building work.
To pay tribute to her life's work and her 308 roles, a commemorative event in Mari Törőcsik Square will include the planting of the same number of metal flowers around the memorial tree with the names of the characters she played, together with relatives, colleagues, and fans. The performative commemoration will focus on what mattered most to the actress, who was also a socialite: her community. Each participant can place the sound flowers in a "bed" around the memorial tree according to their preference, which will be consolidated for posterity by the end of the commemoration.
The many different roles that the actress breathed life into would create a dynamic, ever-changing image in the immediate surroundings of Bottomless Lake: the metal flowers are in constant motion thanks to their flexible stems, tracking human interactions and environmental influences. The dynamism of the installation would create a subtle sound effect as the flowers gently clap together.
The kinetic and sound installation surrounding the Mari Törőcsik Memorial Tree is inextricably linked to the current conditions of the space. The center of the 40 cm wide circular arch of the colored concrete "flowerbed", which forms the basis of the installation, is the Memorial Tree. The circle of four sections allows access to the tree from four directions, creating an intimate space of remembrance. With their movement and interconnections, the sound flowers with their reflective surfaces, following the movements and lights of the environment, blend into the landscape, but also emerge from it, attracting passers-by. Another important design consideration was that the monument should not take up significant green space from the park, which is actively used by residents.
The concept can be divided into two parts: a performative memorial, which seeks to capture Mari Törőcsik's personality through her human relationships and personal relationships, and a kinetic and sound installation, which aims to represent the artist's diverse work and the different roles she played. At the commemoration of the actress' death on 16 April, fans, from her closest relatives to friends and colleagues, will have the opportunity to place a copper sound flower in the bed, symbolizing the role she played. The momentary gesture will become a permanent, yet moving, memory by the end of the commemoration.
For the commemoration, 308 copper-tone flowers will be prepared, thematically sorted, and available for participants to choose from. Each person will then be able to place the flower by its stem in a "bed" around the memorial tree. The final motif of the commemoration is the consolidation of the flowerbed by pouring concrete colored with tulip pollen into the gutted beds.
The installation is also inextricably linked to the Mari Törőcsik Memorial Tree by its choice of materials and location: the "bed" surrounding the American tulip tree highlights the position of the tree, creating a prominent space of remembrance. In its use of materials, the yellowish concrete bed, colored with the pollen of the tulip tree, refers to the flora surrounding the memorial and, not least, to Mari Törőcsik's cheerful personality.
The sides of the concrete beds will be left rusticated, while the top surface will be polished to a gloss finish. The metal flowers are envisioned as flexible, softly tinkling but timeless constructions: their stainless steel stems ensure the necessary durability against both weather and human interaction, while the individually engraved beryllium copper heads are responsible for the desired sound.