The staff of the Public Education Department has developed special proprietary programs: these conversations with the viewer explore various issues of artistic creativity.

Style in art
Western Europe 13th - 20th Centuries.
Tamara Vasilievna Gavriuseva
This series of conversations examines the leading art styles which were expressed in all forms of plastic arts - in architecture, sculpture, painting, and applied art - and which were widespread in the majority of European countries.

A nearly universal history of sculpture
Svetlana Borisovna Esman
Man is the real hero of sculpture. That is the peculiarity of this form of fine art. Sculpture clearly reflects man's view of himself, the world, time and space.

The art of France in the 15th-20th centuries
Tamara Vasilievna Gavriuseva
This series of tours makes it possible trace the path by which the French artistic school developed, passing from medieval tapestries and enamels to the paintings of Matisse.

The beginnings of art
Liubov Mikhailovna Rogova
When did art arise? What is the special nature of ancient cultures? How do archeologists discover ancient monuments and can you make sense out of what has been found? To what extent are the issues of ancient art topical in our day? These and other questions will be examined in this program.

European art: the logic of artistic development (styles and directions)
Isabella Savelievna Beliat
Amidst the multitude of artistic phenomena which appeared in Europe over the course of more than two thousand years, one can discover an inner logic for the development of certain aesthetic and pictorial traditions. The task of this series is to follow the process of their transformation and the specific interpretation in various cultures over the course of centuries.

Everyday life and holidays among the peoples of the Ancient World
Irina Valerievna Diubanova
In the ages-old course of days and events man looked for a deeper sense, collecting the baggage of wisdom which people call 'the wisdom of the millennia.' This series allows participants to draw closer to the everyday life of the Ancient Egyptians, the Greeks and the Romans.

The life of Greek myths in art
Liudmila Aleksandrovna Ivolgina
This series acquaints participants with transformations in the images of Antique mythology over the course of three thousand years. The rich material of our collections reveals the grand spiritual and creative potential of these images.

In the amazing world of stone
Natalia Nikolaevna Nikitina
The collection of colored stones kept in the Hermitage provides a splendid opportunity to get to know some of the 'secrets' of stone and of the way this material which nature created can be turned into inimitable works of art.

The ideal of beauty in the art of the Ancient World
Olga Alekseevna Utekhhina
The task of this series is to trace the creation and embodiment of aesthetic ideas in works of art from Ancient Egypt to Byzantium.

Ancient Rome. Contact with the life of a great civilization
Irina Valierevna Diubanova
The masterpieces of the Hermitage's first class collection of monuments of Ancient Roman art allow one to make contact with historical events, with the biographies of well known politicians, with the life of the proud and energetic "people dressed in togas."

Christianity and art
Irina Pavlovna Zorina
The series examines extensive material on the history of Byzantium, the Middle Ages, Russia and Western Europe. It traces the influence of religious ideas on aesthetics ànd art, and it highlights the special aspects of their links.

A history of Russia in portraits
Irina Pavlovna Zorina
This series explores basic stages in the history of Russia (from Peter the Great to the middle of the 19th century) in the portraits of statesmen and private persons from the 18th - 19th centuries..

The War of 1812 Gallery of the Winter Palace
Conversation-tours led by Hermitage researcher Irina Pavlovna Zorina

Rembrandt and his age
Irina Pavlovna Zorina
This program acquaints participants with the Hermitage's collection of works by Rembrandt in the wider context of 16th century European painting.

Best pages of history in portraits and in the fate of those 'inside the picture'
Isabella Savelievna Beliat
In this series we investigate the structure of a painting and basic principles of its expression.

"What's Hecuba to him?", or Why does man need art?
Isabella Savelievna Beliat
The objective of this series of conversations is to provide an idea of art as a crystal which refracts everything: religion, morality, aesthetic culture and even politics, thereby appearing to be the equivalent of human existence itself.

The world of nomadic Eurasia
Liubov Mikhailovna Rogova
A program series of in-depth activities that shed light on the world of nomads of the Eurasian steppes, whose art is so well represented in the Hermitage collections.

The Hermitage. The history of construction of its buildings and formation of the collections
Tamara Vasilievna Gavriuseva
In this series we trace the history of the museum from its foundation to our own day: the stages by which the collections were assembled, the construction of the museum buildings, changes in the principles guiding the display of the collections

The art of Byzantium
Nadezhda Sergeevna Zabolotskaya
These conversations provide an idea of the history and specific features of Byzantine monuments. They allow us to evaluate the contribution of the artistic culture of this country to world art..

A flawless pearl of Europe
Svetlana Gennadievna Pavlova
Series devoted to the art of Spain from the 15th - 19th centuries in which the traditions of West and East were intertwined in an amazing way.

The universe, gods and man in the art of the Ancient World. Part I.
Irina Valerievna Diubanova
Works of ancient art are a "book" about the Universe, Gods and Man which we will try to read, by examining monuments of the great civilizations of Egypt, Rome, the Etruscans and Crete.

The universe, gods and man in the art of the Ancient World. Part II.
Irina Valerievna Diubanova
The life of man is one of coming to understand wisdom. Thousands of years ago people sought wisdom by worshiping great gods and in observing the phenomena of nature, as well as in contemplation of the events of their everyday lives.

Applications are accepted in the Excursion Bureau of the Hermitage
Tel.: 571-84-46
Fax: 312-23-66