Dobrovits Aladár szerk.: Az Iparművészeti Múzeum Évkönyvei 5. (Budapest, 1962)

HOPP FERENC MÚZEUM - MUSÉE FERENC HOPP - Major, Gyula: Memorial Exhibition of the Ferenc Hopp Museum of Eastern Asiatic Arts: The Art of Asia

tion would show the Japanese material of the Collections Hopp and Vay first of all, containing the largest part of the objects not having been exhibited for 20 years, further the most prominent pieces of the cca 10,000 new objects of art acquired since 1945, at the same place and simultaneously, arranged according to seven Asiatic countries. Our brother institution, the Museum of Industrial Art has conceded a generously large space to the memorial exhibition, an area nearly five times larger than the space of our own two museums. In consequence of this we could exhibit 30 per cent, of the objects of art preserved in our stores. In the mighty domed hall of the Museum of Industrial Art we have exhibited the most important art treasures of the Near-East (Turkey, the Arabic peoples and Persia) together with the prominent objects of the collection Zichy, the archaeological finds of the Caucasus and Central Asia. The last mentioned pieces were exhibited for the first time. In the southern part of the hall recently acquired objects, illustrating the art of India, were situated, mostly textiles, various metal objects and pottery. Our permanent exhibition on the art of India dispensed us of presenting a larger Indian material. The Japanese section received an ample space in the gallery around the domed hall, the art of China and Tibet were opposite to it. Between the two larger sections Burma, Siam, Indonesia and Mongolia were presented. In the exhibition area on the floor we presented the art of Corea and Vietnam, mostly by new acquisitions. In the representative room of the Museum the most precious pictures of the Far Eastern Museum were exhibited, completed later by a larger section, containing 50 pieces of Chinese and Tibetan paintings, a smaller exhibition of Japanese wood-couts, containing the most precious and beautiful prints of the museum, and an exhibition of modern Chinese wood-cuts and paper cuts. The following lines are summing up the material of the various sections, mentioning the most important works of art. THE ART OF JAPAN The material destined to be exhibited from our Japanese objects is to be seen in the left wing of the great gallery sorrounding the domed hall and in the middle part of this gallery. This part of the exhibition was a quite unexpected sensation even to the Hungarian visitors of the museum, increased ten fold since the end of the war, as no Japanese exhibition was organised since 1945, not to speak of one or two smaller exhibitions of Japanese graphic art. It has caused many a surprise to our old visitors too, as the original material of the time of Mr. Hopp and Monsignore Vay was enlarged from 2000 to 8200 pieces since the end of World War II. Beside the bequests Dáni, Agai and Dr. Fettick, of almost 2000 pieces altogether, a number of small collections came into the possession of the Museum, mostly as gifts; nevertheless the Ferenc Hopp Museum was also able to purchase some precious objects. The overwhelming majority of the Japanese exhibition presented the art of the Tokugawa age (1601—1867). Ferenc Hopp, the founder of the museum, collected in the first place objects of industrial art, showing an exquisite taste and an expert knowledge in their choice. The objects of art he bought are mainly products of the eighteenth century and the first half of nineteenth,