For sixty years, from 1935 to 1996 James Huziak made violins, putting together over fifty instruments simply for the joy of music and Now thirty five examples of his craft are on display at the Godfrey Dean Art Gallery.
Jim Huziak, James' son, says that the show came about because gallery director Don Stein heard about his efforts to document all of the violins in the collection. The family thought it was a good idea to put together a celebration of the work, including a concert in the evening because a violin is meant to play music above all else.
The art of violin manufacture was a hobby for James, Huziak says, and he was never interested in selling the instruments, instead focused on making each one better than the last. While an instrument could be sold, the price was $2,000, a serious amount for an instrument in the 1970s. The reason for the high price was because he wanted them to be serious players making an investment.
"He wasn't going to give them up to just hang on the wall."
The fact that he was not interested in sales is a big reason why the show can happen, and Huziak says he has not heard of another case of so many instruments made by one person still in the same collection.
More than just music, the violins also contain local history, as some of the instruments are made out of things like wood components of threshing machines, or the counter of a hardware store.
This is the first time the violins have been shown together, and Huziak says that this is really the first time many people have seen what his father had worked on for so many years.
"Even people we have known all our lives is the surprised by the number of them."
Huziak says it's rewarding to see people enjoying the violins again, and given that his father made them to play them, it's a fitting tribute to have a concert on his instruments.
This show will be the last time all of the violins are in the same place. Huziak says that when it comes to violins, they need to be played and enjoyed, rather than hang on the wall as they are now, so they are planning to sell the collection. However, they want the instruments to be sold to people who will play them, and Huziak says they are trying to find serious players to sell the instruments to.
"A violin hanging on the wall is a waste, it's just a piece of wood. They have to be played. They have to be moved and I would like to see them in the hands of violinists. They improve if they are played and they just get old if they don't."
The show runs until December 6 at the Godfrey Dean.
