The Museum of Fine Arts Budapest [antikvár]

INTRODUCTION Located at the centre of Hősök Tere (Heroes' Square) in Budapest, the Millennial Monument is an eclectic secular altar flanlced by two buildings as if by two ancient temples: the Exhibition Hall and the Museum of Fine Arts. The former presents temporary shows, while the latter houses one of great collections of European fine arts. The Museum's building is a later example of the strict neo-classical style. This is very appropriate for the collection of art works housed within it, since they were assembled during the two centuries which saw the birth of European museimis. The monolithic building professes the principle of the museimi as the temple of the arts, and its exhibitions seek to approach historical completeness. Of course there are many gaps in the desired completeness, a goal which even the biggest museums would have difficulty in achieving, but we nevertheless cannot abandon our ambition to present the public the widest possible panorama of the history of European art. The classical-academic viewpoint binds and at the same time limits us: our collection can only encompass sculpture and painting (together with graphic art). Applied arts and crafts do not belong in a collection of this type. Originally neither of the collections of an archaeological nature—that is to say, neither the Classical Antiquities nor the Egyptian collections—formed part of the institution when it was founded. Thus the permanent exhibitions which follow the gradual renovation of the building meet in time, in other words they grow into each other, spanning thousands of years. Due to lack of space, the Museum of Fine Arts has hitherto only been able to show the public a part of its collections at a given time. Although opportunities to exhibit larger portions of the collection have increased since 1957, when the National Gallery was established and the collection of Hungarian art was transferred there, we believe the latest extension and renovation works will allow the Museum to appear before the visitors and researchers extended and renewed, with no loss of value. We also trust that a new generation of supporters and friends will, like earlier ones, help to make this treasure-house more complete and further improved. Miklós Mojzer General Director 86 ( IP ¦ 'ij'l I'li'i'iir