ENG-1983 — Page 297

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RECREATION AND THE ARTS

periodicals, 4 014 reels of microfilms, 2 278 video-cassettes, 1 890 sets of slides, and 49 937 records and cassettes tapes. Some 133 800 people joined the libraries as new members, bringing the total membership to 1.28 million. More than 7.5 million books were issued for home reading and a further 12.7 million were read in the libraries.

Some 1.19 million people participated in the extension activities organised to promote the use of libraries, including book exhibitions, creative writing competitions, a Chinese literary week, talks, clubs, video-cassette and film shows, hi-fi concerts and live perform- ances. To mark the centenary of the Urban Council, seven books, including the six winning entries in the second competition on Creative Writing in Chinese for Children, a Shakespearian comedy in Chinese and a series of reading guides were published.

Hong Kong Museum of Art

During 1983, the Hong Kong Museum of Art presented 14 major exhibitions, including Picasso's early works, ancient Chinese bronzes, a photographic exhibition of Buddhist sculpture, new American paperwork, and Chinese works of art from the world-renowned Avery Brundage Collection. For the first time, the Commonwealth Photographic Exhibi- tion was held in Hong Kong with photographers from 16 countries participating.

Throughout the year, 284 012 visitors attended the exhibitions

an average of 778 people a day. In addition to major exhibitions held at the museum galleries, small travelling exhibitions were loaned free of charge to libraries and cultural institutions. The museum also organised regular film shows, guided tours for school groups, and lectures by local and overseas scholars and artists. As part of Urban Council's programme to encourage the visual arts, significant items continued to be added to the museum collections. Permanent accommodation for the museum is planned at the Tsim Sha Tsui Cultural Centre with a floor area of 12 500 square metres, replacing the present temporary facilities at the City Hall high block.

The Flagstaff House Tea Ware Museum, a branch of the Museum of Art, was complete in late December. The museum, situated at Victoria Barracks in Central District, houses more than 500 items of antique Chinese tea ware and will be opened in January 1984.

Hong Kong Museum of History

The year marked a new era for the Hong Kong Museum of History which moved into new temporary premises in Kowloon Park in February. Two converted 80-year-old barrack buildings provide two floors of exhibition space, a 100-seat lecture room, an extension activities room, and storage and office areas for the growth of the collections in preparation for the permanent museum at Chatham Road East.

Exhibitions mounted during the year included the museum's inaugural exhibition on fossil man in China, attracting 169 000 visitors in three months; a stamp exhibition to coincide with the start of a collection on the postal history of Hong Kong, visited by 65 000 people; and exhibitions featuring Tang Dynasty kiln sites, nature conserva- tion and local currency. The total attendance figure at exhibitions reached 438 500. Many visitors also attended lectures and other activities held in the museum. The museum continued to expand its collection of items of local historical interest and, in collaboration with the Antiquities and Monuments Office, continued the development of its Central Archaeological Repository. It worked with the newly-established New Territories Museum Activities Section to preserve Kowloon-Canton Railway diesel rolling stock for future display; and was given a 1949 Daimler bus, the first double- decker used in Hong Kong.