Shine! - time for jewellery, the upcoming exhibition of the Hungarian National Museum (Hungarian National Museum Public Collections Center – HNMPCC) opens on October 18, 2024. By its transperiodic character curators aim to highlight more profound interpretations lurking behind aesthetic values of the articles. Anyone can connect easily with the essence of jewels there, so don't miss out our brand-new spectacular exhibition!
From time immemorial, jewellery has been carrying the most complex message about people, in life and in death. It is not only the precious material and careful design, but also the spiritual value, the underlying meaning and the personal attachments that make jewellery timeless, yet unique and unrepeatable in a million ways. Whether they are jewels of the body or of the garment, jewellery never exists in itself, but within a social context, and only through that context can it be understood in its entirety.
"It is important to bear in mind that it is often not individual choices and taste that determine jewellery, but representational needs. Jewellery is a language through which wearers speak about themselves, their identity and their community", says Erika Kiss, art historian, head of the Department of Modern Art at the HNMPCC HNM's Historical Archives, and one of the curators of the exhibition.
Among the artefacts of 40 000 years - from the prehistoric period to the present day - on display will be some of the earliest gold jewellery from the Carpathian Basin, a nationally unique silver brooch depicting a human face, a dazzling treasure from the Hun period, several medieval gold clothing pins and ornaments decorated with precious stones, an 18th century gold reliquary cross, and even jewellery made from horseshoe pins and human hair.
"We present a selection of the most interesting and valuable pieces of the Hungarian National Museum (HNMPCC) following a curatorial concept with a narrative focus. It is our intention to make visitors reflect on the history and meaning of their own jewellery during the museum experience, and we hope that subsequently they will look at their favourite pieces in a different way." - said the co-curators of the exhibition, archaeologists Zsuzsa Hegedűs and Zsuzsa Pető.
The title of the exhibition was inspired by Emese Benczúr's work "Shine", which was commissioned by thy Hungarian National Museum for the exhibition in 2017 commemorating the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.
One of the main ambitions of the exhibition, which opens in October, is to show the dimensions and multiple meanings of glow; the artist's work does the same with the tools of contemporary art.
A series of exciting accompanying activities, museum education sessions, workshops, pop-up exhibitions, contemporary reflections and surprises will also be part of the show, alongside a thematic collection of pieces in the gift shop.
The professional and educational presentations on jewellery, representation and luxury will be presented to the public on the Researchers' Night on 27 September. The detailed programme is available on the official website (www.mnm.hu). – Tickets for the exhibition are now on sale at the Hungarian National Museum | Shine! - time for jewellery (mnm.hu).
