Balázs Varga photographer

May Day photo series: 2014-2024

May Day (or Maying) is celebrated on May 1st and has roots in ancient spring festivals, particularly from pagan Europe.
Originally, it marked the coming of spring and fertility, with festivities like dancing around a maypole or crowning a May Queen.
These customs were common in places like ancient Rome.
The international labor movement adopted May 1st as a day of solidarity and protest, first established as an official workers' holiday after the 1886 Haymarket affair in Chicago, where workers were striking for an eight-hour work day.

In Hungary, as in many other countries in the region, May Day has evolved into a public holiday known as Labor Day, commemorating workers' rights.
During the Communist era, May Day was promoted as a day for parades, speeches, and events supporting workers and the labor movement, organized by trade unions and political leaders as the "celebration of work" ("Munka Ünnepe").

Today, May 1st in Hungary combines the historical workers' celebration with Communist "Celebration of work", but in a peaceful and less political form.
It often includes fairs, concerts, and community gatherings, blending traditional folk customs with modern-day leisure.

On this day in the City Park of Budapest, the blend of people, fairs and sellers is very particular.
People from all over the country, and even from Transylvania (Romania) visit the park, as there is free market, so everybody can sell whatever they want. Despite the high prices for food and rides, all kinds of different social groups and generations present themselves to have fun.

In 2014 I just bumped into the May 1st event in the City Park with my camera and got amazed immediately. I returned every year since than
(except for 2020 and 2021 as it was cancelled due to Covid19).
What you see here is a selection of photographs from the 8 years when I participated.

On the 10th anniversary (2024), a short video was created about how I work: https://youtu.be/aWFTRbKxFwE