Szilágyi András (szerk.): Ars Decorativa 21. (Budapest, 2002)
Diary of events 2001
DIARY OF EVENTS 2001 At the end of 2000 Dr. Zsuzsa Lovag retired as director-general of the Museum. The new director-general, who took up his post on 1 January 2001, was Professor Károly Simon. Prior to his new appointment, Professor Simon was for a long time head of the Product Design Department at the Hungarian University of Crafts and Design, Budapest. On 9, 10 and 11 February 2001 the Museum hosted St. Valentine's Day events. At the exhibition of flower arrangements visitors could see the most beautiful St. Valentine's bouquet; "masterworks" by young flower-arrangers; compositions made by the "7 Flowers Group"; bridal bouquets; and bonsai, orchid, bromelia, and cactus displays. Flowers and gift items were on sale at the events. The by-now-traditional exhibition of work by holders of Lajos Kozma Scholarships in Handicrafts and the Applied Arts took place from 27 February until 25 March. Organised by Agnes Fejes, it presented creations by fourteen young artists. János Devich, head of the Arts Division at the Hungarian Ministry of National Cultural Heritage, opened the show. It included works in many areas of art, and displayed various uses for different materials worked in accordance with traditional and modern techniques. The Gödöllő Artists' Colony came into being in 1901, in the spirit of the Gesamtkunstwerk endeavours around the turn of the 20 th century. Painting, sculpture, graphic art, and applied art were all accorded equal status in the work of the artists creating there. The two decades of the colony's existence represent an important chapter in the history of Hungarian art. To mark the centenary of the colony's establishment, large and comprehensive exhibitions commemorating its work were staged in Gödöllő and Budapest. With the co-operation of Dr. Katalin Geller, Ágnes Prékopa and Cecília O. Nagy, the show Synthesis of the Arts - From the Home to Monumental Spaces was held at the Museum of Applied Arts, Budapest. Part of the Budapest Spring Festival, it was opened by Dr. László Baán, administrative state secretary at the Hungarian Ministry of National Cultural Heritage. The opening, which took place in the evening, was made memorable by a dance performance entitled "Another Dance Theatre Ritual". The multitalented British applied artist Walter Crane (1845-1915) staged an exhibition of his work at the Museum of Applied Arts, Budapest in 1900. This event was recalled by a commemorative exhibition organised by Hilda Horváth, a Hungarian researcher into Crane's oeuvre. The show, which ran from 23 March until April 16, was opened by Anthony Crane, a grandson of the artist who visited Budapest as a guest of the Museum. During his time in Budapest, Anthony Crane presented the Museum with a document of very great value: the visitors' book for the 1900 exhibition. This will be kept in the Museum's archives. Connected with the exhibition was a one-day scientific symposium. In the course of this, Anthony Crane showed slides of the most important pictorial documents of his grandfather's life and work. Sue Wilson, the acclaimed Crane expert living in London, delivered a lecture entitled "Exporting Arts and Ideals: Walter Crane in Budapest". Edited ver-
