“My whole life is about the arts”
Interview with Gabriella Shah, director of the DornyayBéla Museum
MúzeumCafé 51.
Gabriella Shah was appointed to head the DornyayBéla Museum in 2013. Her main aim was to make the museum an active and open communal place, which seems to have been realised: the exhibitions draw an increasingly broad range of visitors and the museum has turned into a visitor-friendly venue. Furthermore, besides staging exhibitions, organising events and developing the museum, she contributes in many ways to animating and promoting the local art scene in Nógrád County. She and her husband, Timor Shah, make short films about local events and artists. In addition, she writes a blog on the arts. Gabriella Shah was born in Salgótarján in 1975. She graduated in the history of the arts from Miskolc University in 1996, then added to her degree diplomas in German translation, educational organisation and religious history. She has been doing PhD studies at Szeged University Doctoral School of Literature since 2011. Her research subject is the influence of icons on the avantgarde. She began her career at the Museum of Pásztó, then worked as an art historian at the DornyayBéla Museum from 2010. Gabriella Shah thinks that Salgótarján has plenty of treasures to be explored and presented to the world. Of local artists KálmánCsohány is known by an increasing number of people, and IstvánGaál and his memorial room are also noted in Hungary. Not only the exhibitions, but also films made with her husband and various publications contribute to promoting artists. Their films focus on Nógrád County with portraits of artists or the presentation of aspects of cultural heritage. Their latest film shows the history and present situation of archaeology in Nógrád County. Each film has its own story and many also have a future: besides local TV channels they have been on Duna Television and now they can be viewed online. Gabriella Shah would like to develop an open museum reaching all age groups. Initially she was aware of the need for exhibitions which attracted many visitors, so the first was about 19th-century painting, for which works were loaned by Kogart. It was followed by the exhibition Optical Illusions. She has aimed at making the museum and its exhibitions somewhat popular, yet preserving their values and finding those points which can make the museum more interesting.
The visible storage entitled Glass Town has recently been established. It is frequently visited by residents, since it preserves the memory of the town’s former glass factory. A great task was to work out the concepts concerning exhibitions and making the museum events regular, as well as forming and maintaining good relations with civil organisations, local companies and residents.