Amerikai Magyar Szó, 1978. július-december (32. évfolyam, 27-50. szám)
1978-08-03 / 29. szám
Thursday. Aug. 3. 1978 AMERIKAI MAGYAR SZO 7 A REVIEW OF ART, LITERATURE AND HISTORY - A SUPPLEMENT OF THE MAGYAR SZO • * John Albok is a name practically unknown to Americans. An immigrant tailor from Munkács, Hungary, where he was born in 1894, he came to this country expecting to find a “heaven on earth”. Unlike so many who came to America’s shores, he achieved his dream and established himself in New York Citv on the basis of a modest business as a tailor. This enabled him to support a family and to pursue his avocation of photography, to which he brought the personal qualities of humanitarianism and a somewhat romantic idealism. When the Great Depression struck his adopted homeland, Albok was shocked and disappointed that so great a catastrophe could befall America. He saw the poverty of the jobless who scavenged from the garbage cans in front of his shop and slept beneath the elevated railways or in the parks. He could not reconcile such povertv and despair with the promise of America and set about to record life as he saw is on the streets of New York. With the advent of the New Deal under the leadership of Franklin D. Roosevelt, Albok discovered in New Yorkers a resurgent spirit of hope and brotherhood that transcended their hardship. With his camera he brilliantly captured their inherent dignity, and his poignant photographs reveal the vitality and strength of a people pressed down by circumstances but able to endure with pride and faith in the future. The accompanying photograph is ■ representative of his art and form and is Albok’s tribute to his fellow New Yorkers. It is also a belated tribute to Albok himself, who, deeply moved by the depression and inspired by Roosevelt’s concern for its victims, recorded their plight with creative fidelity to the truth of those desperate times. Except for one exhibition in 1938 at the Museum of the City of New York, Albok has never received the recognition that his work deserves. Indeed, he never even opened a studio as such, preferring to work after hours in his tailoring establishment. In recognition of his unusual ability and sensitivity, the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library exhibited a selection of his photographs, taken during the Roosevelt years. Characteristically, Albok now almost 84, and still active tailor and photographer, looks upon these photographs as his tribute to Roosevelt, whose New Deal, he believes, rekindled hope in the lives of ordinary Americans. JOHN ALBOK MASTER PHOTOGRAPHER HUNGARIAN HERITAGE EXHIBIT OPENED IN DETROIT After five years of fund raising, two phases of the Hungarian Heritage Room in Wayne State University’s Ethnic Heritage Centre have been completed in Detroit. A dedication program took place June 16th. Five of an eventual eight rooms have been completed in the Ethnic Centre. The Hungarian Room contains artifacts, historical articles and other examples of the country’s heritage, culture and arts, with decorations done in the manner of a Hungarian folk room. Floral wall designs represent Kalocsa natterns from the region of southeastern Hungary, and the carved columns are typical of designs originating in Transylvania /Erdély/ which was part of Hungary until World War I. The first two phases of the project were completed at a cost of some $ 24.000, raised by a Hungarian Heritage Room committee, headed by Vilmos Misangyi. Other committee members include Mrs. Misangyi, the Rev. Dominic Csorba, pastor of Holy Cross Catholic Church, Detroit,' Bishop Dezső Ábrahám, pastor of the Hungarian Reformed Church, Allen Park; Mr. & Mrs. Géza Kogler, Tibor Jász, Louis Mi- halyfi, Mrs. Ernest Pálos, Mrs. Joseph Oláh and Mrs. Margaret Krokker. The Hungarian Heritage Rooms are a gift to the city and to the university, as part of the rebirth of the cultural, educational and medical center of Greater Detroit. Further plans for the Hungarian Rooms include a large wall mural depicting a historical event still to be determined, a stained glass window wall, a carved entrance door and carved furniture. During the private dedication program prior to the open house, Dr. George Gullen Jr., WSU president was introduced, along with Mrs. Katherine Gribbs, who initiated the Cultural Room concept. Others present were Tivadar Balogh, the architect, and Geza Kogler, the room planner. The Rev. Csorba and Bishop Abraham offered prayers. A brief performance by several members of the Dancers Hungária completed the program. * 57 The Friends of the HERITAGE will have their first informal get-together at j the concert of the brilliant young Hungarian pianist, SÁNDOR FARKAS,Saturday, October 7th, 1978. at the Carnegie Recital Hall, 154 W 57 St. New York City at 2 PM. Mr. Farkas is one of the most exciting pianists on the hori- j zon of music. Do not fail to attend and meet other friends of the HERITAGE. PROGRAM: Soanata, A Major, by Haydn Seven Pieces for Piano, Op.11, by Kodály Improvisations on Hungarian Peasant Songs, Opus 20. by Bartók Four Laments for Piano, Opus 9/a, by Bartók Bagatelle sans tonalite, by Liszt, La Lugubre Gondola, by Liszt and Rhapsody No. 11. by Liszt. Tickets are $ 1.50 for students and senior citizens, $ 3.- for others. I
