The Real Night of Museums - The State of Public Collections (2021)

Years ago, during one of our Nights of Museums, we planned an alternative exhibition as part of our program. Our intention was to show how, beyond the celebration of the special day, museum workers face everyday life, how their work is affected by changes in legislation, budget cuts and new government ideas.

We wrote to the heads of national, metropolitan and county institutions, seeking smart, responsible interlocutors for a public debate; we asked for data and documents to assess their situation. We sent out thirty-six letters and requests; one reply was received, again requesting anonymity. At the time, there was no central ban on public speaking, but the leaders of the institutions were already aware of the expectations and were rightly concerned about reprisals.

In 2021, in preparation for an extraordinary Night of Museums, we take stock. We have brought together the main events of the past ten years, focusing mainly on museums but also on sister institutions, libraries and archives.

The dichotomy is striking -- on the one hand, we see ambitious plans to abolish, move, replace or rebuild systems and institutions that have been in place for centuries, while completely ignoring the views of professional and interest groups. Unimaginable amounts of money are poured into these projects.

On the other hand, we see the exploited, dependent and vulnerable public collection workers: the slaves of the system. For example, ten years ago they could spend HUF 25,000 a year on learning and development, and books. This sum was then reduced to 10,000 a year, and then it was abolished completely. Another example of their exploitation is the way they were fired and then, a few months later, the unemployed were hired as cultural public workers for a third of their original salary. There was little that the professional and interest groups could do about this.

As we admire the rich collections and enjoy the special and fun programs on the Night of Museums, let us not forget these people.

(Compiled by Katalin Dobó. Design by Károly Timári.)