Temporary exhibition of Mór Fischer's life

• 14. May 2002. - 08. August 2002.

Mór Fischer, coming from a merchant family in Tata, got aquainted with Herend in the 1830-ies. At the beginning he supported financially Vince Stingl, who set up his ceramic workshop in Herend in 1826 with the intention - making high-quality porcelain through step by step experimentation - to start porcelain production in a country that had hardly any industry at the time. His venture in lack of enough financial support and professional resources failed. However, the workshop survived and his goal was attained by the new financial partner, and from 1840 sole propietor: Mór Fischer.

By that time, well over a century had passed since the first European porcelain manufactory was founded. Porcelain, during the Hungarian Age of Reform in the second quarter of the 19th century, was still a luxury, but it was no longer the preserve of aristocrats and merchant princes. Already it was entering the homes of the middle classes as well. Fischer, in modern terms, had to decide which market he should cater for. His choice was to concentrate on the most demanding and carefully, even artistically executed work. That decision was to bring the manufactory success for several decades to come.

 Fischer represented QUALITY during his nearly four decades long properous work at Herend. Then as now, luxury porcelain was made using the highest quality materials and techniques, for a section of society that appreciated beauty and craftsmanship, and took the utmost pride in its table services.

With this exhibition our aim is to complete the permanent exhibition; while in the vitrines upstairs we display the best creations of the Fischer-epoch, the emphasis in our seasonal exhibition has been set to illustrate the development of a porcelain enterprise, shaped by its ambitious owner and the 19th century Hungarian history.