You Light Up Our House

We had some incredible guests leave today, Mark and Enid Sherman. Originally from NYC and still sounding enough like NY'ers to make me homesick it was exacerbated when we discussed the quality of bagels across the US. Mark is a retired psychologist, formerly both as a practitioner and educator. Enid runs a business with her daughter designing, manufacturing, and selling luggage tags and hair barrettes. You can see some examples here. The back has a hidden compartment for your name and address. As a travel writer, this is a great advantage as most experienced travelers know you do not want people at airports seeing your name and address, knowing your house may be ripe for the picking. Here are some examples of their offerings. Click on the picture to be redirected to their website, but not until you finish reading here. 

Mark surprised us with a leaving gift, a copy of one of his paintings. He had taken painting classes and later offered lessons himself. His specialty is lighthouse paintings as you can see here. We were also treated to his small gallery of paintings that he created while on their cruise here. Each painting was a stunning piece of art with extreme detail. With  my lack of patience, these only assured me that if I were to take up painting, it would have to be the modern splash paint in large areas type. As OCD as I can be at times, it has to be with larger things, like categorizing my books by genre, author, and in alpha order by title. Mark picked up on this habit of mine. If you click on Mark's painting, you will be redirected to one of his web sites.

Pin It Now!

Reader Comments

nad oliric Wrote "Tom & Beth are friends of mine since high school...when Tom sent me the image last wk, I immediately purchased it...his work is powerful, sometimes beautiful, always thought provoking...I am currently using his work to illustrate my book of poetry (Existential Male) Though we each create separately, I find many of his images fit many of my poems...his are visual poems... Beth is poetry in motion."

Pin It Now!

A Work of Art

The post title is truly understated. If you have read this blog for the last few months, you will remember that we had the pleasure of hosting artist Tom Besson and his wife Beth. Beth was kind enough for forward to me a photo she had taken in Kerepesci Cemetery, which inspired Tom to pick up the brushes and create. Because I admire his work so much, I asked if I could post them here. Art is meant to be shared. www.tombesson.com

Pin It Now!

Another Shot at Museums

Today was museum day yet again. We were attempting to visit three of them: The Ernst, which was previously scheduled, but was closed, the Banknote and Coin Exhibition, and the Hungarian Natural History Museum. 

Meeting time was 11:00 am and Ron and I arrived on the minute. No one else showed up; even our American friend Angela, who said she would join us must have slept in. The Ernst Museum has ever-changing exhibits with no foundation exhibit. Each six weeks or so, they completely change what is on display. Ron and I last visited here in 2002 as a poster in the lobby reminded us. The display at that time was “Coffee Houses of Budapest”. It was so impressive as they had actual parts of famous, but no longer existing cafés set up and there was a little coffee counter to have a cup of java if the exhibit put you in the mood.

Today, however, we were not as fortunate, in my opinion. The exhibit was “Pál Deim’s Retrospective” with the cost of entrance set at 500 Huf. It was not until I had covered the four large rooms that I discovered the handouts explaining who Deim is. The other discovery was that others were taking photos. I did not see a sign for a photo ticket, so I decided to take a few snaps until caught in the act. Neither of the two attendants said a word, so I continued. Most of the photos were just to have a visual to explain why I did not like the work, not that I wanted represenations for any other reason.

Diem is still alive and living in Szentendre. After searching through stacks of Hungarian handouts, I found the last one in English. Deim is currently 74 years old and is considered one of the classics of modern and contemporary Hungarian art. His style is abstract and geometric shapes, creating an “Idol” (puppet) as the central theme of his work. I never learned to savor abstracts or geometric art, so most of this exhibit was wasted on me. The idea of the puppet was not explained further and seemed to be too metaphorically abstract for my thinking, so I let it go into the ethers for others to absorb. Ron has a degree in Philosophy and found much deeper meaning in many of the pieces than I ever would strive for. I did however, make it into one of his abstract paintings, a bit abstract myself.

The handout also states that Diem’s last Budapest exhibit was in 1992, also at the Ernst. It does not clarify why this is. We did notice that many of the pieces, large and small, paintings and sculptures were marked “Artist’s private collection”. This raises the question of whether or not he found a market for his work. The few pieces which were ‘on loan’ from other museums, were from the Szentendre Museum. Even fewer were in the hands of private collectors. Pál, do you have a day job to pay your way? Inquiring minds want to know.

Stop 2 was the Banknote and Coin Exhibition located on Szabadság tér 8, the same square that houses the US Embassy. We walked all around the square before we found number 8, but the building was closed, though the tour information states it is open every day. These photos are of a building around the corner that I have always loved and never had my camera handy when in that area. Alas, with the museum closed, we would just have to stop at the Farger’s café even earlier than expected. This café was not open either, a greater disappointment than the exhibition being closed. We went to the café in the middle of the square, which has surly servers in addition to overpriced drinks.

Ron needed to teach a private lesson, but since he still holds the title of Mr. Map, he was kind enough to accompany me to the Hungarian Natural History Museum. When we arrived at the square, the building looked old, worn down, and vacated. I was steadying myself for another strike out when we found the door was locked. The entrance was actually to the left in a new modern building. Once in the lobby, Ron took his leave and left me to my own wanderings. I was a bit horrified at the admission cover of 1,200 Huf. The ticket is lovely, but I could forgo this for a lesser price. This was one of the priciest museums and could be one of the reasons students did not show. Those over 65 do get in free with an ID.

The building is new, clean, and modern. The first exhibit as you walk in was enough to send me flying out again. There were magnificent African animals stuffed and set around a pond. Other exhibits were more exquisite specimens, head and shoulders only, torsos missing. After seeing so many of these creatures alive in their natural environment in South Africa, it was devastating to see these specimans; the result of one man's need for sport killing.

The saving grace was the sign designating the coral reef, which caught my eye. Through a large passageway, they have created coral reef displays on the floor and covered it with thick glass. The sense of walking on water did not escape me. In some areas, there are large aquariums filled with colorful and spectacular live coral and other sea life.

I was lucky to have happened here today as they temporary exhibit was “The Mummies of Vác”. It seems that people were buried in their highly decorated coffins and placed in a burial vault in a church in Vác. At some point in time, the door to the vault was sealed over and forgotten. When it was rediscovered the temperature and humidity made perfect conditions for the dead to be mummified. Thus, there were mummy, not complete skeletons in the coffins. This dates back to the late 1700s. Most of my 2 ½ hour visit to the museum was spent here.

The rest of the museum was modern, bright, colorful, clever, educational, and entertaining, but with a definite focus for children. If one were traveling with children, this would be necessary to visit. For adults alone, unless the exhibit is still there, I would say it is avoidable unless you have a fervent interest in seeing stuffed animals. I am not sorry I went, but I most likely will not return any time in the future either.

Typical of these parts, though, I bought a ticket from the cahier. There were two people waiting to help visitors at the coat check area. Hardly busy in 80+ degree weather, yet there were two of them. Then the guard at the main entrance looked at my ticket sticking out of my shirt pocket. When I went to the mummy exhibit, there were two more people sitting at opposite sides of the entrance. The young man asked for my ticket. I said I did not know if I had a special ticket for this exhibit and handed him my entrance ticket. He said I did as he snipped the corner off of my ticket. So the question in my mind is if everyone gets a ticket that allows them into the special exhibit, why are there two people manning the door? Then on the second floor, I did not see one employee, other than the young woman sleeping on a chair in the hallway, but on the third floor, there were six like a gaggle of geese chattering away. Some things will never make sense to me.

Pin It Now!

The Fine Arts and Agricultural Museums

I sent a note out to all of the American Studies students that I would be visiting all of the museums in Budapest during the summer. This was an open invitation for any of them to join me if they wished and we would settle somewhere for a coffee and chat when we were finished. As I plan my visits, I post the time and date and then wait to see if anyone joins me.

The first excursion to be posted was the Fine Arts Museum with the possibility of the Agricultural Museum to follow, energy pending. The Fine Arts Museum has a free one-hour tour in English at 11:00 am daily, after paying the admission of 1,500 Huf. A well-trained group of volunteers organizes it; many are ex-pat wives whose husbands are working here. I arrived at 10:30, sitting on the steps waiting to see if I were to go it alone or if I would have company. At 10:45, two of my students arrived, which was a thrill for me. Although they are both university students and one is an Art History major in addition to American Studies, they were not afforded a discount for entry. That is a pity!!

The tour consisted of about 20 people, mostly Americans from what I could overhear. There were two tour guides, one from Florida, and the other from Alaska. Today, we were to explore the Dutch Master’s gallery. Before starting in the gallery, we learned some history of the building. It was built for the Millennium celebration 100 years ago, so this is an important anniversary year. It houses the National collection of non-Hungarian art with exhibits dating back to the Egyptian era. It is considered one of the most impressive galleries in Central Europe as its home to works by famed artists such as El Greco, Goya, Rembrandt and Rubens. The foundation of the collection was part of the Esterházy family’s private holdings, once one of the most influential aristocratic families in the country. We have had guests who are museum curators in other countries who had explained just how impressive and important this collection is to the art world. I had no idea.

The group went from select painting to select painting as we learned some history of Dutch painters from the 17th century. The pictures were chosen by the docents conducting the tour and we found out later that with different docents, we may have viewed other paintings or a different gallery altogether. The explanations were detailed, but first the docents made us think by asking provocative questions about each painting. They fully involved the participants, which added to the experience. My students were enthralled, adding to my enjoyment of the whole experience, each of us learning new perspectives of looking at a painting and what details to look for.

There is a special exhibit of Titian at the museum at this time and one of my students had a special interest in the painting Portrait of the man with blue-green eyes from the Palazzo Pitti in Florence. The museum had the exhibit in his Italian name Tizian and I had no clue who he was. It was not until I saw Titian that I recognized the artist. He is one of the key figures in the history of Western art, considered to have been the greatest 16th-century Venetian painter. We went to see this masterpiece and then some others on display in the same area.

I had thought we would break for a coffee, then if the students wanted to join me, we would continue on to the Agricultural Museum. One of them had to catch a train, so we parted ways and I walked to the park. I spotted a dog in the little lake and went to investigate. A young man was standing on shore and throwing a thick stick for his dog to retrieve from the water. The dog was obviously finding this great fun. When he brought the stick back to shore, if it were not immediately tossed again, he would start barking impatiently. As this scene played out, I snapped pictures of the happenings. The young man asked if I would e-mail him copies of the pictures and gave me his address. I learned that the dog’s name is Mazsda in Hungarian and Raisin in English. Mazsda allowed me to toss the stick for him a couple of times, so I was able to get my doggie fix for the day.

After a coffee in the park, I ventured over toward the Agricultural Museum. To be honest, this would have been the last museum on my list to see. The only part I had ever seen of it other than the outside was the one exhibit viewable from the souvenir shop attached. It did not look impressive or interesting. I had feelings of dread going in it, but if I were to commit to all museums, I was not going to change my own rules, but I could procrastinate them.

Across from the museum is a small chapel. This was the first time I had seen it open so I was curious. It was a lovely little church and after paying 100 Huf to the woman in charge of the wrought iron gate, I was allowed in. An order of priests are stationed here and it is still in use. From the English sign in the lobby, it is St. Gellért’s chapel where two popes have celebrated mass for different occasions. Behind the altar was a lovely mosaic type art piece that grabs the eye immediately. I was alone in the chapel at the time of my visit and spent a restful 30 minutes reflecting on the surroundings. When I came out, the gate guardian motioned that I was now allowed to go up to the choir loft as part of my admission.

Upstairs, there is not much to see other than a small non-descript organ and a few folding chairs. I had hoped that the higher view would be a better angle to photograph the art behind the altar, but it was partially obstructed by a beam and light poles from the ceiling. Upstairs in not worth the climb, but the rest was refreshing.

Outside the Agricultural Museum, there is a huge statue of a Karolyi Sandor. I found that he is responsible for modernizing Hungarian agricultural and taught the methods, hence the pile of books next to him.

Procrastination aside, I went into the museum. It was a pleasant surprise that it was free unless you wanted to take photos. A photo ticket was 500 Huf, but having an air of prejudice of what I would see, I did not bother to purchase one. I have to admit, I fell victim to jumping to conclusions. The museum was wonderful. This is the information discovered from their brochure. This is the biggest museum of agriculture in Europe. It is in the Castle of Vajdahunyad on Széchenyi Island. The architect was Ignác Alpár who combined many different styles utilizing parts of historic buildings in Hungary’s history. It was originally built for the Millennium as an exhibition hall and became the museum in 1897.

On the main floor are 12 permanent collections. This is where I encountered the term archeozoology, which I had never heard before. It is the zoological information gathered through the discovery of old animal bones. The building is 5200 square meters with marble floors and staircases, carved crystal chandeliers, stained glass windows, magnificently painted walls, and truly fascinating exhibits. For a museum that I had expected would hold my attention for 10 minutes, kept me captivated for 2 ½ hours.

Pin It Now!