Imre Jakabffy (szerk.): Ars Decorativa 1. (Budapest, 1973)

FERENCZY, László: Report on the activities of the Hopp Museum of Eastern Asiatic Arts in 1971

LÁSZLÓ FERENCZY REPORT ON THE ACTIVITIES OF THE HOPP MUSEUM OF EASTERN ASIATIC ARTS IN 1971 In this year, apart from the usual duties, the main task of the museum was the arrangement of two new exhibitions in the building of the China Museum. The exhibition of The Art of Chinese Cloisonné Enamels was opened by Professor Frigyes Pogány on September 28th. There are several outstanding pieces from the 15th to the 18th centuries among the cloisonné enamels arranged in ten showcases. Enlarged photographs and coloured sketches illustrate the characteristic decorative motifs applied on cloisonné enamels. The selection and arrangement of the material was carried out by Géza Pajor with the technical assistance of the Installation Department of the Central Directorate of Museums. The second exhibition, Japanese Art in the Meiji Era, was opened on October 17th. Apart from traditional and new Japanese-style scroll-paintings, woodblock-prints, illustrated books and some small bronze sculpture of works of art belonging to various branches of applied arts: ceramics, metalworks, ivory and wood carvings, lacquer wares, cloisonné enamels and textiles. Several pieces shown in this exhibition were acquired and transmitted earlier by the Museum of Applied Arts from the materials of the international exhibitions held in European countries about the turn of the century: in 1873 in Vienna, in 1878 and in 1900 in Paris. With one exception, the silk brocades belonging to the Department of Textiles in the Museum of Applied Arts are all from the 1873 exhibition of Vienna. The pieces of our Meiji exhibition were selected and arranged by László Ferenczy with the technical assistance of the Installation Department. The museum lent material to several exhibitions organized by other institutions and held outside the museum: to the exhibition on the activity of Hungarian museums held in Exeter, England; to the exhibition of "Fifty years of the People's Republic of Mongolia" shown in the Ernst Museum in Budapest; to the exhibition of tableware and to the exhibition of Caucasian rugs in the Museum of Applied Arts. The Post-office Department issued a series of eight stamps printed after the original Japanese woodblock prints of the museum. In connection with the International Stamp Exhibition held at Budapest in September the original Japanese prints, together with some other prints of high quality were exhibited in the Hopp Museum. In the field of restoration Gábor Szabó restored two wooden Buddhist sculptures, a large wooden relief and prepared about twenty pieces to the Meiji exhibition. A great achieve209