Szilágyi András (szerk.): Ars Decorativa 19. (Budapest, 2000)

Diary of Exhibitions

the exhibition presented the development of Chinese ceramics over the last 2000 years, showing the changes and gains in techniques and decoration from funerary figures to overglaze-painted porcelain and to the forms and designs developed for the export market. Many pieces in this exhibition were on show for the first time to the public, which showed an especial interest in the funerary ceramics, in the rare blue-and-white porcelain pieces, in the ceramics used for embellishing roofs, and in the export porcelain recovered from sunken ships by diver-archaeologists. This exhibition was organized by the sinologist Györgyi Fajcsák, curator of the Chinese Collection. Opening addresses were given by the cultural historian Dr. András Várnai and by János Probster, director of the International Ceramics Studio, Kecskemét. It was not possible to bring out a catalogue or guide to the exhibition; on the other hand, preparations are underway to publish a catalogue of the Chinese ceramic collection as a whole. In addition to the above, visitors to the György Rath Museum could see its permanent exhibition Oriental Art Collecting in Hungary, as Reflected in the Collections of the Ferenc Hopp Museum of Eastern Asiatic Arts (this opened in June 1997) as well as the Rath Memorial Room (this opened in December 1998, to commemorate György Rath, the first director of the Museum of Applied Arts and the founder of the Rath Museum). The Rath Museum also played host to visiting exhibitions. From March 11 until April 11 the public could see The World of Kokeshi Dolls, a visiting exhibition compiled by the Japan Foundation. This was organized by Eva Cseh and was opened by His Excellency Nukazawa Kazuo, the Japanese ambassador to Hungary. The colour fanfold English-language guide to the exhibition was augmented with an insert in Hungarian. From July 7 until July 21 the exhibition Nomads of Western India. Photographs from the Indira Gandhi Museum of Man, Bhopal was on display. Organized by Zsuzsanna Renner, this was opened by Her Excellency Mrs. Laksmi M. Puri, the Republic of India's ambassador to Budapest, and Dr. Erzsébet K. Szentpéteri, head of the Public Collections Department at the Hungarian Ministry of Cultural Heritage. A leaflet in Hungarian was produced for this show. The anthropologist Arun Kiro, a specialist accompanying the exhibition, gave a highly successful lecture on the traditions of the people of the Rabari nationality who feature in the photographs. Maria Ferenczy