Carnival in T&T has far reaching effects, with the most recent being an exhibition in Hungary entitled Carnival in Trinidad by Steve Ducsai. The exhibit opened on December 1 and features photographs by Atilla Abuczki and T&T Guardian lensman Andy G Hypolite.
According to Abuczki, the opening night was a hit, and he is excited about bringing the exhibit to where it all began-T&T. It was by accident that Hypolite met Hungarians Abuczki and Ducsai on D Avenue around this time last year. One was a photographer who had a Canon Mark (11) without a flash in his possession and was attempting to take a photo of some costumed models at one of the regular liming spots. Realising that he would run into problems with the lighting and the fast pace at which the models' waists were moving, Hypolite offered to loan him a flash.
He accepted, along with a subsequent invitation to return to T&T for Carnival.
The duo touched down on Trini soil in the height of the Carnival 2011 season, and approximately one year later photos featuring the mecca of all Carnival are creating quite a stir on the other side of the globe.
Ducsai, one of Hungary's top painters who does art restoration for museums across Europe and Abuczki were overwhelmed by the beauty and liveliness of Trinis.
But they were dumbfounded by the costumes and the revelry.
They described J'Ouvert activities as nothing like they had ever seen in their lives, and loved being "sandwiched" by revelers. Their eyes popped and jaws dropped when they witnessed the hundreds
Taste of T&T Carnival
of thousands of beautiful women in costumes parading the streets on Carnival Monday and Tuesday, and were inspired to take the activities back to their home land, a country that had never experienced a Carnival.
By the end of the season, all of Abuczki's memory cards were filled, and Ducsai had stored the memories at the back of his mind to recreate with his paintbrush on his return home. So while C2K11 may be just a distant memory in T&T, Hungarians are only just beginning to get a taste of it via Carnival in Trinidad by Steve Ducasi.