Gyugyi Collection

In the Sikorski House in the Zsolnay Cultural Quarter in Pécs, the collection of Zsolnay porcelain belonging to László Gyugyi, a US‑based electrical engineer and collector, is exhibited. The exhibition “Gyugyi Collection – The Golden Age of Zsolnay” can be visited from September 1 2010.

Background

In August 2009 Dr. László Gyugyi reached an agreement with the city of Pécs to sell his private collection, which contains unique pieces, to the city for the estimated market value of €2.5 million. As part of the agreement, Pécs committed to display the collection in a separate exhibition, in a suitable setting. Therefore, among the projects of the Zsolnay Cultural Quarter, the first building transferred was the Art Nouveau villa of the Sikorski family, the Sikorski House, so that the public could see the special exhibition as soon as possible, which was inaugurated by President of the Republic Pál Schmitt.

The collection

The nearly 700 unique ceramic objects, six one‑of‑a‑kind Zsolnay designs made with watercolour, and two photo albums mainly represent the factory’s historic and Art Nouveau periods. The exhibition displays products or unique pieces made in small series between 1870 and 1930. In this period, at most a few pieces were produced of each form, decoration, or technical colour variant. The collector focused his attention on two chronologically distinct but essentially related periods: the early historicism of 1878–1885 and especially the Art Nouveau period of 1898–1908. In addition, he placed great emphasis on luxury objects made with a very rare technique, items created for the millennium commemoration, and ceramics designed and produced between 1874 and 1910 by members of the founding Zsolnay family (Vilmos, Teréz, Júlia and Miklós). Western Europe and America, especially the main cities of Zsolnay export—Paris, London, Vienna and New York—offered great opportunities to discover and acquire outstanding Zsolnay artworks.

Among the unique works, particularly significant is the painted plate signed and dated by Vilmos Zsolnay, which was made by József Rippl-Rónai. In addition, there are designer prototypes here, and most of the exhibited objects also appeared at world exhibitions (Paris 1878, 1900; Sydney 1879; Antwerp 1894). Most of the pieces are vases or containers.

László Gyugyi deliberately shaped his collection so that the factory's creations would be presented as part of international style development, while also providing a cross‑section of decorative arts production. The collection is presented in the book Zsolnay from the Big World, published by Helikon Kiadó in 2006. In the edition and under the care of Zsolnay Heritage Management Nonprofit Ltd., an expanded edition was also published in 2010 on the occasion of the opening, titled Zsolnay Golden Age – László Gyugyi’s collection from the big world returns to Pécs.