Szilágyi András (szerk.): Ars Decorativa 24. (Budapest, 2006)

Events 2003-2005 (Judit Pataki)

during the Budapest Spring Festival and closed on 9 May) could see these works. The exhibition was inaugurated by the composer Gábor Presser and the music historian János Mácsai. Nowadays, rarely do we find old boxes and cases in our great-great-grandmothers ' drawers. These fragile and volatile wrappings hardly survived the one-time use and the boisterous decades; this is why it is especially fortunate if several generations of a family keep boxes and cases made of dozens of various materials. Dr. Mária Zlinszky-Sternegg and her family offered the irreplaceable first-quality objects from the heritage of Dr. Gyula Janny, professor of medicine (1842-1916) to the museum. The public could see these boxes and cases from 6 April to 15 August at the Museum of Applied Arts. The exhibition 'Magic Boxes. Family Memories Locked in Boxes' was organised by the art historian Dr. Hilda Horváth and inaugurated by Annamária Víg, Head of the Museum Department of the Ministry of National Heritage. Those visiting the exhibition could take special delight in listening to the loudspeakers in the exhibition halls: the pianist Alex Szilasi performed waltzes by Chopin. Schoolage children had the opportunity to test their skills preparing boxes in speaking likeness of the originals. The exhibition 'Industry and Arts - Zsolnay's 150 Years' was the culmination of a series of events that started in 2003, on the occasion of the 150

,h anniversary of the foundation of the Zsolnay Factory and the 175"' anniversary of the birth of Vilmos Zsolnay, 'the greatest Hungarian potter'. The exhibition was inaugurated on 20 April 2004, by Dr. Katalin Szili, chairperson of the Zsolnay Anniversary Committee, Jürgen Koppen, ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary of the European Commission of the European Union and Dr. Ferenc Glatz, director of the Institute of Historiography of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. This exhibition, organised by the art historian Éva Csenkey, was the first one in Budapest to display not a single period but the complete artistic activity of the factory, from 1853 to the present day. Also, it was the first time that the complete Zsolnay collection of the Museum of Applied Arts was publicly displayed. The glorious and sad times of the factory were represented with more than 1,700 objects, including documents as well as works lent by the Janus Pannonius Museum (Pécs), the Zsolnay Porcelain Manufactory Co. Ltd. and the Zsolnay Örökség Kezelő Kht. The masterpieces, categorised in accordance with the periods of the history of the factory and to those of artistic style, gave evidence of the unparalleled versatility of the Zsolnay workshops. The exhibition was open until 3 April 2005. It has almost become a tradition for museums in Budapest participate in the event 'The Night of Museums', a programme intended to make the longest night of the year memorable. The events offered by our museum centred on this exhibition, which was entitled 'Lustrous Glazes, Radiant Fires'. On 26 June, presentations, lectures, projections and concerts popularized our show until dawn. Beáta Hauser became famous in the world of textile art in the very year she has graduated for college; she prepares archaic-style gobelin pictures, which are especially remarkable for the special weaving technique she applies. The exhibition 'A Quarter of a Century', organised by Aliz Torday, open from 6 May to 6 June gave an insight into her career of 25 years. A special point of interest was that three times a week the artist revealed the secrets of gobelin weaving to those interested. The Ferenc Hopp Museum of Eastern Asiatic Arts (a branch of the Museum of Applied Arts) and the Japan Foundation organised the exhibition 'Japanese Kites and Whirligigs'; the show was open to the public in the Museum of Applied Arts from 11 to 30 May. The curator was the japanologist Mónika Bincsik; the exhibition was inaugurated by Ogoura Kazuo, chairman of the Japan Foundation. Hungary and Slovakia joined the European Union in 2004. The exhibition 'Formál 2', organised by Gábor Major, offered an opportunity for young and innovative Hungarian and Slovakian designers and students to present