On Thursday, the Petőfi Literary Museum (PIM)'s new traveling exhibition entitled Átröpülök sösszäm házámon, on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the poet's birth, will be launched. The first stop of the museum bus will be Sándor Petőfi's hometown, Kiskőrös, which will be followed by more than 200 locations for about a year.

Demeter Szilárd, the general director of the Petőfi Literary Museum, emphasized at the press conference held in the Museum Garden on Tuesday that the main goal of the traveling exhibition is for as many people as possible to get to know the oeuvre, magnificence and genius of Sándor Petőfi in Hungary and beyond our borders.

The director general reminded that the Petőfi bicentenary will officially begin on Wednesday at the National Opening of the School Year in Kiskőrös, and on this occasion the museum bus will also visit the site, and then it will visit several locations in the Carpathian Basin until the middle of 2023.

According to the press material distributed at the event, the motto giving the title of the exhibition is a fragment of the poem "My Songs", which not only expresses Petőfi's passion for travel and poetic ambitions, but also refers to the unusual nature of the exhibition. The exhibition does not focus on the poet's biography, but rather presents the decision-making situations that determine the creative attitude, such as becoming a poet, social mobility, choosing a career path, becoming involved in public life, organizing a literary life or starting a family.

The backbone of the exhibition is made up of 10 prominent collection pieces, which indicate each stop of the imaginary journey. This includes, among others, the butcher's bard of the poet's father, István Petrovics; the beaded wallet from Júlia Szendrey; or even a billiard cue, which Petőfi could use in his regular place, the Pilvax coffee house. Each relic is accompanied by a featured poem, as well as several quotes, manuscripts, works of art and literary historical interest. Those who are interested can hear the lines of the work "Road Notes" performed by the actor Márton Patkós.

According to the plans, the bus will travel the country and the Carpathian Basin from September to August 2023. By December, the public of more than 60 municipalities can meet it, and by the end of the Sándor Petőfi commemorative year, the traveling exhibition will visit more than 200 locations, which will also appear at various events, for example at the events of the Győr Bookstore or the 40th Traditional Csallóközi Vásar, Dunaszerdahely. The curators of the exhibition are Edina Eszter Molnár and Diána Sóki. The realization of the exhibition was made possible by the support of the National Cultural Fund.

Source: MTI

Photo: MTI/Zoltán Balogh