Museum of Ethnography getting a new building

The northern wing of the new Ethnographic Museum will fulfill social functions. The southern wing, in the meantime, will include offices, an Ethnographic Archive, a library and research rooms, according to Pestbuda.hu.

The Ethnographic Museum will have a new building in the OMRRK (National Museum Restoration and Storage Center) in Szabolcs Street.

The building in Kossuth Square will be closed soon, so the museum will move to the OMRRK. Most of the collection will be transferred to the warehouse in Szabolcs Street, and it will be center for restoration works. The ground level of OMMRK will be open to visitors, as it will be the place for larger objects — like carts — of the collection.

An additional, partly underground ethnographic building will be constructed on the Ötvenhatosok tere. The northern wing will serve social purposes with a visiting center on the ground floor, a children’s museum on the first floor, and some event halls on the top. The southern wing will contain offices, the Ethnographic Archive, a library and research rooms. The underground passage connecting the two wings will have exhibitions all along.

The chief manager of the Ethnographic museum claimed that the ceramic collection — containing 35,000 pieces — is one of the most significant attractions of the museum, so it will be available for free in the stairway.

The ceramic halls — including interactive items — will lead visitors from one wing to the other.

The new permanent exhibition will have much more space. It will be divided into three-four units based on a certain common topic. The exhibition will mix Hungarian and international items according to an inner logic based on the reaction to each other.

Director Lajos Kemecsi emphasized that the building will use the most modern solutions. A smartphone application is being made for the exhibition, the program made for administration will be cope with the moving to the new place and will be also able to create virtual exhibitions later. The usage of touchable materials, smart cases and new solutions that help manual experience is also among the plans.

The sleeping attires of different nations can be tried in the children’s museum, and children might also learn the ethics of visiting museums. They will be also involved in organizing and operating exhibitions, as there will be child guides and group leaders. No temporary exhibitions are planned for the opening, as the ceramic hall is their priority right now. The next step will be the creation of an own permanent exhibition, which will open the same time as the children’s museum in 2020.

The rooms for temporary exhibitions can be merged or divided, so up to four exhibitions can be hosted at the same time. Lajos Kemecsi added that they see great potential in the treasures of the film and sound record archive, so a movie theater will also be established in the museum.

The manager also added that the top of the building will be a part of the City Park, and it will be designed by the same team who won the opportunity to restore Liget’s green areas. A recent decision allows the green surfaces to reach closer to the memorials of 1956. 5-7 meters of dirt might cover several spots of the building, and that will be used for planting trees. The roof garden will be safely approachable, and roads will lead to each floor’s rooms.

Lajos Kemecsi also stated that an outer shell will cover the facade, which will provide some shade on one hand and serve as a sign on the other. The pattern that will cover the shell will depict folklore motifs, which will be selected from the items of the exhibitions, emphasizing the complexity and variety of the collections of the museum.

Photo: Ligetbudapest.hu

Ce: bm

Source: Pestbuda.hu