Hermitage Center in Kazan Program: Protocol of Intentions Signed

On 9 January, 2002, the State Hermitage Museum, Culture Ministry of the Republic of Tatarstan, Administration of the City of Kazan and History Institute of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tatarstan signed a protocol of intentions to prepare and realize the Hermitage Center in Kazan Program.

The parties pledged to introduce the people of the Republic of Tatarstan to the treasures of world art and culture from the State Hermitage Museum, strengthen the ties between the State Hermitage Museum and culture institutions of the Republic of Tatarstan and realize educational programs.

The Hermitage Center in Kazan Program includes:

- Exhibitions of works of art from the State Hermitage Museum and museums of the Republic of Tatarstan;

- Academic activities including conferences, seminars, symposiums, round table discussions and other forms of communication and information exchange and exchange visits of specialists of the State Hermitage Museum and museums of the Republic of Tatarstan;

- Restoration activities including special training programs for restoration specialists from museums of the Republic of Tatarstan, conferences, seminars and exchange visits;

- Consultations of restoration and other specialists of the State Hermitage Museum provided to specialists of museums and other culture institutions of the Republic of Tatarstan;

- Education activities including special educational programs for children, teenagers and young people including visits of students of the School Center of the State Hermitage Museum to the Republic of Tatarstan and schoolchildren from the Republic of Tatarstan to St. Petersburg;

- Other cultural education activities including music festivals and concerts in the Republic of Tatarstan and St. Petersburg with the participation of the State Hermitage Museum's St. Petersburg Camerata Orchestra, State String Quartet of the Republic of Tatarstan, La Primavera Municipal Orchestra (Kazan) and other orchestras and performers.

Specific projects will be determined at specialists' meetings. The Program is managed by Mikhail B. Piotrovsky, Director of the State Hermitage Museum, Ildus G. Tarkhanov, Minister of Culture of the Republic of Tatarstan, Kamil Sh. Iskhakov, Governor of the City of Kazan, and Rafail S. Khakimov, Director of the History Institute of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tatarstan. Coordinating Council will be created to prepare and realize the Program including representatives of the State Hermitage Museum, Culture Ministry of the Republic of Tatarstan, History Institute of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tatarstan and the Representative Office of the Republic of Tatarstan in the City of St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region.

Pursuant to the Program, the State Hermitage Museum and the University of Kazan signed a Memorandum of Research Cooperation.