The Hermitage Acquired Two Decorative Tables the Same Age as the Museum
The State Hermitage took delivery of its new acquisition – two small decorative tables created in the 1760s, making them the same age as the museum. The two pieces of furniture are the work of St Petersburg craftsmen. They carry marquetry decoration and a depiction of cards of French pattern. The tables were the first purchase from the recently created Special Endowment Fund for the Development of the State Hermitage Museum with the assistance of the BP company.
St Petersburg International Media Forum in the Exchange Building
Between 1 and 10 October 2014 the building of the Exchange was the venue for the first St Petersburg International Media Forum. The holding of such events in the Exchange, which was recently transferred to the State Hermitage, is an illustration of the proposed usage of the building for a combination of museum and public-cultural activities.
Students’ Day in the Hermitage
On 5 October 2014, the Hermitage Theatre was the setting for Students’ Day, a celebration that traditionally opens the new educational season in the State Hermitage’s Youth Centre. Each year the Hermitage staff planning this event choose a theme that is significant not only for the museum, but also for the city. This year Students’ Day was devoted to the 250th anniversary of the State Hermitage and the Manifesta 10 European biennale of contemporary art.
Mikhail Piotrovsky’s Visit to Italy
On 13 October 2014 the Palace of the Doges in Venice was the venue for an international conference on “Cultural Heritage: International Excellence and the Italian Challenge”. It was organized by the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia and the Fondazione Ermitage Italia to mark the 250th anniversary of the Hermitage. On 14 October Mikhail Piotrovsky, General Director of the State Hermitage, held discussions with Piero Fassino, the Mayor of Turin. On 15 October 2014, Mikhail Piotrovsky held a press conference in the Galleria Brera in Milan devoted to the 250th anniversary of the Hermitage. He presented the main projects that the Hermitage was presenting to its visitors in the jubilee year.
Mikhail Piotrovsky and Rem Koolhaas “Dialogue” in the context of the Manifesta 10 Biennale
On 17 October 2014, in the Atrium of the Eastern Wing of the General Staff, as part of the educational programme of Manifesta 10, an open discussion took place between Mikhail Piotrovsky, General Director of the State Hermitage, and the celebrated Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas. At the heart of the dialogue was a discussion of the influence of the Hermitage on Rem Koolhaas’s ideas and the Manifesta 10 biennale and the influence of Rem Koolhaas and Manifesta 10 on the Hermitage.
The State Hermitage Is Awarded a Museum Olympus Prize
On 24 October 2014 the State Museum of Political History was the setting for the formal awards ceremony for the winners and nominees of the Museum Olympus competition. This year the State Hermitage was the recipient of a bronze statuette of Mnemosyne in the “Prestige of St Petersburg” category for the organization and implementation of the Manifesta 10 European biennale of contemporary art. In the “Exhibition of the Year” nomination the finalists included one of the main exhibitions of the jubilee year – “At the Court of the Russian Emperors. Costume of the 18th to early 20th centuries in the Hermitage collection”.
Opening of the Exhibition “Conservation in the Hermitage. Through the Prism of Time”
On 28 October 2014 the opening took place in the Armorial Hall of the Winter Palace of the exhibition “Conservation in the Hermitage. Through the Prism of Time”. It featured around 260 works that had undergone restoration in the museum’s Department of Scientific Restoration and Conservation. They are works of art from the Hermitage collection varied in character, materials and time of creation that have been preserved or restored to life by restoration artists. A similar restoration exhibition was held in the Hermitage 30 years ago, in 1984. The exhibition continued until 1 March 2015.
Presentation of the State Hermitage’s New Website
On 29 October 2014, the Atrium of the General Staff was the setting for the presentation of the State Hermitage’s new website. It reflects the traditions and development of the museum and provided a new standard of quality in interaction with visitors. The site has been implemented on the basis of a new concept. Its fundamental features are maximum openness and accessibility to information about the museum, collections and events, convenience for users, contemporary standards and mobility.
Opening of the New Season in the Friends of the Hermitage Club
On 30 October 2014 the 18th season opened in the Friends of the Hermitage Club. In the new 2014/15 season the Friends Club joins the world in celebrating the 250th anniversary of the Hermitage and a special programme of meetings was planned for the club. The first gathering of the season was devoted to the presentation of the Department of Scientific Restoration and Conservation.
Opening of the Exhibition “Bill Viola: The Silent Sea”
Between 8 and 23 November the Foyer of the Hermitage Theatre housed the exhibition “Bill Viola: The Silent Sea”. Bill Viola (born in 1951) is a contemporary American artist, a pioneer of video art, has in a 40-year career produced a host of video works, architectural video installations, sound installations, musical performances, works for television and electronic music performances.
Presentation of the Greater Hermitage Projects in New York
On 9 November 2014, as part of the events devoted to the 250th anniversary of the Hermitage, Mikhail Piotrovsky, General Director of the State Hermitage, had a meeting in New York with a group of specialists and benefactors. Michael Conforti, director of the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute and a member of the Hermitage’s International Consultative Council, acted as moderator of the discussion, in the course of which the main projects of the Greater Hermitage concept were presented along with the new museum approaches developed in connection with it.
“Territory of Freedom” Scholarly Conference
On 10 November 2014 the Hermitage Theatre was the venue for the “Territory of Freedom” scholarly conference organized by the State Hermitage and the Pushkinskaya 10 Art Centre with the support of St Petersburg’s Committee for Culture. The conference was devoted to the round anniversaries of well known exhibitions of unofficial art in Leningrad: the 50th anniversary of the exhibition of the Takelazhniki in the Hermitage, the 40th anniversary of the exhibition in the Gaza Palace of Culture and the 25th anniversary the Pushkinskaya 10 Art Centre (the Free Culture association). Those events were important milestones in the consolidation of non-conformist free art in Soviet Leningrad and post-perestroika St Petersburg.
Charity Evening in New York
On 10 November 2014 a charity event was held in New York devoted to the 250th anniversary of the Hermitage, organized by the American Hermitage Museum Foundation. Mikhail Piotrovsky, the Director of the Hermitage, gave a talk on the Museum’s preparations for its jubilee. Yury Molodkovets’s photographic project The Hermitage: The Age of Photography was presented.
Presentation of the film The Hermitage Revealed in New York
On 11 November 2014 the Guggenheim Museum in New York hosted a public showing of the full-length documentary film The Hermitage Revealed by the British director Margy Kinmonth, which is devoted to the 250th anniversary of the Hermitage. The screening was organized by the American Hermitage Museum Foundation as part of the programme of events to publicize the museum’s jubilee in the USA. This event marked the film’s release in the United States.
Opening of the Exhibition “Expeditions: Archaeology in the Hermitage”
On 11 November 2014 the exhibition “Expeditions: Archaeology in the Hermitage” opened in the Kutuzov Gallery of the Winter Palace. It was devoted to one of the most important spheres of the State Hermitage’s research activities. The display presented the work of the museum’s archaeological expeditions and also a number of finished archaeological projects: the Sayano-Altai Expedition and the Petroglyph Section of the Central Asian Expedition, which excavated burial mounds and recorded rock paintings in Siberia. A number of exhibits also came from the excavations carried out by the now finished Tokharistan Expedition to Central Asia. The exhibition continued until 29 March 2014.
Music of the Hermitage Festival
Between 11 and 17 November 2014, the Music of the Hermitage Festival was held as part of the Hermitage’s jubilee celebrations and also to mark the 25th anniversary of the Hermitage Theatre returning to use. The festival consisted of five musical evenings, each telling of a particular period or key event in the life of the museum.
Opening of the Exhibition “Stone and Metal Objects by Contemporary Artists”
On 14 November 2014 the exhibition “Stone and Metal Objects by Contemporary Artists” opened in the State Hermitage. In selecting works the organizers tried to show the state of Russian jewellery and lapidary art over the past 10–15 years and also to present pieces by recognized Western artists.
“Current Research in the Field of Photography” Scholarly Conference
From 18 to 21 November 2014 the Staraya Derevnya Restoration and Storage Centre was the venue for an international scholarly conference “Current Research in the Field of Photography” marking the 250th anniversary of the Hermitage and 175th anniversary of the invention of photography. During the conference leading Russian and foreign specialists discussed issues relating to storage and restoration of photographs, the study of photographic materials and the latest technical achievements in the field.
9th International Media Forum “Dialogue of Cultures” in the State Hermitage
On 18–19 November 2014 the State Hermitage hosted the 9th International Media Forum “Dialogue of Cultures”. This year more than 340 journalists from 42 regions of Russia and 30 other countries took part in the forum. More than 40 television channels covered the forum.
Opening of the Exhibition “Dada and Surrealism. From the Collection of the Israel Museum, Jerusalem”
On 18 November 2014 the exhibition “Dada and Surrealism. From the Collection of the Israel Museum” opened in the General Staff. It was organized by the State Hermitage jointly with the Israel Museum, Jerusalem, with the support of the Hermitage Foundation in Israel. The display featured paintings, sculpture, collages and photographs by 20th-century artists who are not represented in the Hermitage collection. Particular interested is evoked by the works of Marcel Duchamp, Man Ray, René Magritte and Joan Miró. The influence of Dadaism and Surrealism on the art world was very long-lived and so the exhibition also included later works by Joseph Cornell, Brassaï and Alexander Calder.
Opening of the Exhibition “The Hermitage: The Age of Photography”
On 19 November 2014 the exhibition of “The Hermitage: The Age of Photography” by the State Hermitage’s artist-photographer Yury Molodkovets opened in the reception room of the museum’s administration. The project was devoted to the 250th anniversary of the Hermitage and the 175th anniversary of the invention of photography. It took the form of a series of photographs of the most popular and most visited places in the museum, such as the Jordan Staircase, St George Hall, Pavilion Hall and Palace Square. All these spaces are filled with a huge number of museum visitors that are engaged in doing one and the same thing – taking photographs.
Opening of the Exhibition “The Results of All Ages. The Era of Historicism in Russia. 1820s–90s”
On 20 November 2014 the exhibition “The Results of All Ages. The Era of Historicism in Russia. 1820s–90s” from the collection of the State Hermitage opened in the Hermitage Kazan Centre. It was devoted to a remarkable period in Russian culture that spans the reigns of three emperors – Nicholas I, Alexander II and Alexander III. The exhibition continued until 11 May 2015.
Opening of the Exhibition “Marijke van Warmerdam. Time Is Ticking”
On 21 November 2014 the exhibition “Marijke van Warmerdam. Time Is Ticking” opened in the General Staff. This was the State Hermitage’s first project entirely devoted to one of the leading and actively developing fields in contemporary creativity – video art. Marijke van Warmerdam is a Dutch artist working in various media, from sculpture and painting to photography and video.
Ball of Masterpieces Come to Life
On 22 November 2014 the Hermitage Theatre was the venue for the “Ball of Masterpieces Come to Life” – a theatricalized performance to mark the 250th anniversary of the Hermitage. The participants of the jubilee ball included personages from famous paintings in costumes created by graduates of the Academy of Theatrical Art.
The Central Bank of the Russian Federation Issues Commemorative Coins for the Jubilee of the State Hermitage
On 25 November 2014 the Central Bank of the Russian Federation put into circulation commemorative silver coins with face values of 3 and 25 roubles in the historical series “The 250th Anniversary of the Foundation of the State Hermitage”.
Congratulations from the Bizot Group
On 26 November 2014 the heads of the world’s largest museums, belonging to the Bizot Group, congratulated Mikhail Piotrovsky and all the staff of the State Hermitage on the museum’s 250th anniversary. The message states: “The State Hermitage Museum is a unique cultural institution and the world’s leading museum. Russian history and culture are represented here as nowhere else, yet the museum is also an outstanding scientific centre. Over these 250 years the Hermitage has remained a centre of international museum cooperation.”
The Book The Hermitage 250 Years. Art 1:1
On 27 November 2014 the 16th “Non/Fiction” International Fair of Intellectual Literature included the presentation of the unique Russian-language collector’s album The Hermitage 250 Years. Art 1:1 the publication of which marked the 250th anniversary of the Hermitage and the 25th anniversary of the Slovo publishing house. This album is the first publication in the world that enables the reader to see masterpieces from the collection of the State Hermitage actual size and as close as possible.
Opening of the Exhibition “Ekphrasis”
On 28 November 2014 the exhibition “Ekphrasis” opened in the General Staff. It was organized by the State Hermitage as part of the museum’s 250th anniversary in conjunction with the State Centre of Contemporary Art with the support of the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation. The word “ekphrasis” comes from an Ancient Greek verb meaning “I express; I speak out”. In art studies ekphrasis is a technique consisting of the description of a work of fine art or architecture in a text. In culture, in a broad sense, it is the reproduction of one type of art using the methods of another.
A Gift from the Signoretto Lampadari Glassblowers of Morano to the State Hermitage
On 28 November 2014, at a formal ceremony, seven exclusive chandeliers made by the craftsmen of the Signoretto Lampadari company of Murano were presented to the State Hermitage. The impressive array of seven chandeliers – one large with a radius of 240 cm and a height of 170cm and six smaller ones with a radius and height of 80 cm – has been used to adorn the halls of the Eastern Wing of the General Staff building.
A Gift from Yury Abramov to the State Hermitage
On 28 November 2014, Professor Yury Shmanovich Abramov, Doctor of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, presented the museum with a statue of Jupiter made by the famous Venetian sculptor Antonio Tarsia (1662–1739) in 1717–18. Thanks to Professor Abramov’s generous gift, after over two centuries Jupiter will be reunited with Juno beneath the vaults of the Hermitage.
Festive Edition of the Hermitage News newspaper
On 28 November 2014 a special edition of the Hermitage News (№3–2014) came out devoted to the 250th anniversary of the museum and the newspaper’s own 10th anniversary.
