Mikhail Piotrovsky’s Book My Hermitage
2014 saw the publication of My Hermitage, a book by Mikhail Piotrovsky, the General Director of the State Hermitage. Arca Publishers produced it in Russian and English in conjunction with Skira Rizzoli Publications of New York. The Hermitage belongs to everyone, but each of us has their own Hermitage: each person has their significant places, their moving memories, their favourite legends. The Hermitage is a part of many people’s lives. Mikhail Borisovich Piotrovsky is not only the director of the Hermitage, but also its chronicler. That is how this book came about – a history of the museum by its Chief Curator.
A Special Edition of the Adresa Peterburga Magazine
In December 2014 the magazine Adresa Peterburga (Petersburg Addresses) brought out a special edition completely devoted to the Hermitage.
An Internet Encounter with Mikhail Piotrovsky, General Director of the State Hermitage
On 1 December 2014, the annual Internet encounter with Mikhail Piotrovsky, General Director of the State Hermitage, took place in the Rastrelli Gallery of the Winter Palace. The Director answered questions from Internet users about the jubilee year and other subjects.
Ceremony of the Presentation of the Double-Headed Eagle
On 1 December 2014, the Large Courtyard of the Winter Palace was the setting for the ceremony of the presentation of the decorative top of the palace’s Telegraph Tower – a bronze sculpture of a Double-Headed Eagle. The sculpture is over 2.5 metres tall and around 2 metres wide. It weighs over 600 kilos.
“The Hermitage Gathers Friends”
On 2 December 2014 the State Hermitage played host to disabled children. The special event entitled “The Hermitage Gathers Friends” was organized by the museum in conjunction with the Great Bear Regional Public Charitable Movement and the Vaganova Ballet Academy and was attended by around 200 children with their parents.
Opening of the Exhibition “Gifts from East and West to the Imperial Court over 300 Years”
On 2 December 2014 the exhibition “Gifts from East and West to the Imperial Court over 300 Years” opened in the Eastern Wing of the General Staff. It presented some 400 works of fine and applied art, weapons, books and numismatic items that had been presented to Russian rulers from Peter the Great to Nicholas II. The exhibition will continue until 10 January 2016.
Opening of the Exhibition “Gifts from America: 1948-2013. Modern and Contemporary Applied Art from the Hermitage Museum Foundation (USA)”
On 2 December 2014 the exhibition “Gifts from America: 1948-2013. Modern and Contemporary Applied Art from the Hermitage Museum Foundation (USA)” opened in the Eastern Wing of the General Staff. It featured 74 works of the jeweller’s art, ceramics, glass and textiles created between 1948 and 2013. The collection was assembled through the efforts of Helen W. Drutt English and Matthew J. Drutt and presented to the State Hermitage from the Hermitage Museum Foundation (USA) to mark the museum’s 250th anniversary. It is significant that this was the first exhibition of American art in our country for two years. The exhibition continued until 8 March 2015.
A Gift of Books from the Rare Book from St Petersburg Publishing House
On 2 December 2014 in the General Staff the Rare Book from St Petersburg publishing house congratulated the State Hermitage on its 250th anniversary. Piotr Suspitsyn, the founder and owner of the publishing house, presented the Hermitage with unique hand-made editions of The Frog Princess (artists G. A. V. Traugot) and The Lay of Igor’s Host (artist Yury Liukshin).
The “Hermitage on Screen” Film Festival
From 2 to 5 December 2014 the Lecture Hall of the General Staff building was the venue for the “Hermitage on Screen” film festival. During that period anyone who wished could watch films about the Hermitage – The Russian Ark, Hermitage People, The Hermitage Revealed, The Hermitage: The Pulse of Life, The Hermitage, Conquering Time and the multi-part documentary film Secrets of the Hermitage.
Ceremony of the Presentation of Vladimir Potanin Foundation Grants to Members of the State Hermitage Staff
On 3 December 2014 the Hermitage Theatre hosted the formal ceremony at which projects awarded grants from the charitable Vladimir Potanin Foundation were presented. For ten years now, since 2005, the Hermitage has collaborated with the foundation on a programme of individual grants to members of the museum staff. Fifty members of staff received incentive grants for the completion of the most significant projects for the museum, while another 22 received grants for travel for research purposes, for restoration training or training in the sphere of museum management.
Screening of the Documentary Film Hermitage People. Dialogues of Generations
For the 250th anniversary of the State Hermitage the Youth Centre produced a video film devoted to members of the Hermitage staff, experienced ones and those just beginning their career in the museum. The film, which was given the title Hermitage People. Dialogues of Generations was screened on 3 December 2014 in the Council Hall. The film is constructed as a series of very candid and vivid interviews in which Hermitage people talking about their work and their attitude to the museum.
The Hermitage Makes It into the Five Most Popular Geotags with Instagram Users
On 3 December 2014 the Istangram photo-sharing and social networking site published ratings of the most popular museum hashtags and geotags. The State Hermitage was the only Russian museum to make it into the top five most popular museum geotags in the world with Instagram users. More than a thousand photographs have been uploaded with the tags #hermitage_museum and the Hermitage’s official page on Instagram has more than 45,000 subscribers.
The Tambov Picture Gallery Produced a Publication for the Jubilee of the State Hermitage
For the 250th anniversary of the State Hermitage, the Tambov Region Administration of Culture and Archive Work in conjunction with the Tambov Regional Picture Gallery produced the publication The Hermitage and the Tambov Picture Gallery that tells through seven stories-recollections about the “threads of fate” that link our museum and the picture gallery in Tambov. The author of the book is Yekaterina Saliakhova, the deputy director for research at the Tambov Regional Picture Gallery.
A Gift from the Boris Yeltsin Presidential Library
During the celebrations of the 250th anniversary of the State Hermitage, the Presidential Library presented to the museum from its electronic stocks a recording of Boris Borisovich Piotrovsky in which the outstanding scholar speaks about work during the Siege of Leningrad.
Academic Council Session
On 4 December 2014 the Council Hall hosted the Academic Council Session entitled "Hermitage is 250 Years Old".
A Gift from Vadim Levin to the State Hermitage
On 4 December 2014 Vadim Levin presented to the Hermitage to mark its 250th anniversary a collection of coins from the Middle East and Central Asia. The collection contains 545 items, including dirhams of the Buwayhids, the Samanids and their 10th-century vassals. This addition is of undoubted significant interest for the Hermitage's Numismatic Department.
Opening of the Exhibition “Metropolitan Alexius' Sakkos. 14th c. From the collection of the Moscow Kremlin Museums. To mark the end of restoration”
Between 5 and 9 December 2014, the State Hermitage together with the Museums of the Moscow Kremlin presented an exhibition timed to coincide with the St Petersburg International Cultural Forum – “Metropolitan Alexius's Sakkos. 14th c. From the collection of the Moscow Kremlin Museums. To mark the end of restoration”. Metropolitan Alexius’s sakkos (liturgical vestment) is a complex and many-sided artefact. It is both a masterpiece of Early Russian art and a piece of the history of the Russian Church, an attribute of the religious hierarchy that belonged to one of the nation’s most venerated saints.
Opening of the Exhibition “A Masterpiece from the British Museum” in the Series “Masterpieces of World Museums in the Hermitage”
On 5 December 2014, the exhibition “A Masterpiece from the British Museum” opened in the Roman Courtyard of the New Hermitage, presenting a statue from the western pediment of the Parthenon that was created in the workshop of Phidias in 438–432 BC. The figure is believed to be an embodiment of the River Ilisos, which in ancient times flowed close by Athens. The exhibition continued until 19 January 2015.
Restoration of the Small Hermitage Exhibition Complex Completed
On 5 December 2014 the refurbished Small Hermitage exhibition facility was presented. In accordance with the concept devised by Rem Koolhaas’s architectural studio the building of the Small Hermitage has been turned into a complete exhibition complex. The same day the first exhibition opened – “The History of the Hermitage Reflected in Its Showcases”. Now the Small Hermitage is an exhibition complex that meets today’s requirements.
Opening of the Exhibition “The History of the Hermitage Reflected in Its Showcases”
On 5 December 2014, in the halls of the former imperial riding-hall, an exhibition opened entitled “The History of the Hermitage Reflected in Its Showcases” that for the first time in museum practice presents showcases as exhibits in themselves. More than fifty examples from the collection of one of the oldest museums in Europe, as well as photographs and drawings from the stocks of the Hermitage present the evolution of the museum space from the time of Catherine II to the early 21st century.
Event for Corporate Friends of the Hermitage
On 5 December 2014 the building of the General Staff was the venue of an event for Corporate Friends of the Hermitage devoted to a presentation of the project for creation of Fabergé memorial rooms. Participants in this long-term project included not only partner companies of the State Hermitage, such as Baker & McKenzie, JT International and the Ilim group, but also private donors – 63 individual Friends of the Hermitage and 3,059 people who took part in the No Queue for Philanthropists crowd-funding programme.
A Gift of the Lobortas Jewellery House
On 5 December 2014, as part of the evening for Corporate Friends of the Hermitage, the Lobortas Jewellery House made a presentation of a Double Horseshoe brooch created to a design by Mikhail Vrubel for display in the newly-opened Fabergé Memorial Rooms.
A Special Column in the magazine Diletant
In 2014 the magazine Diletant ran a special column entitled “The Hermitage is 250”. Each issue of the magazine contained an article devoted to one of the Hermitage’s exhibits. Additionally, on 6 December 2014, at the congress of the Union of Museums of Russia, a special issue was presented that was completely dedicated to Mikhail Piotrovsky, General Director of the State Hermitage.
General Meeting of the Union of Museums of Russia
On 6 December 2014 a general meeting of the Union of Museums of Russia was held in the Atrium of the General Staff building.
The “Kingdom of the Snow Queen” in the Winter Palace
On 6 December 2014 the Large Courtyard of the Winter Palace became the setting for the “Kingdom of the Snow Queen”, the ice gathering of the Art Studio of the State Hermitage’s Schools Centre.
The Installation of the Double-Headed Eagle Decorative Pinnacle on the Telegraph Tower of the Winter Palace
On 6 December 2014 the figure of a double-headed eagle left the Large Courtyard of the Winter Palace and was installed on the Telegraph Tower at the corner of the two façades overlooking the Neva and the Admiralty.
Opening of the Exhibition “Francis Bacon and the Art of the Past”
On 6 December 2014 the exhibition “Francis Bacon and the Art of the Past” opened in the General Staff. The display featured 13 paintings by Francis Bacon from the collection of the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts and also paintings from the Tate Gallery, the Aberdeen Art Gallery, the Yale Center for British Art in New Haven, USA, and Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane, as well as private collections. The display was superbly supplemented by works of art from the State Hermitage collection. Francis Bacon, like many other artists, looked back to his predecessors, studied and used the practices of the great masters of the past and his own contemporaries.
The Hermitage Ball of History in 3D Format on Palace Square
On 6 December 2014, a unique spectacle took place on Palace Square devoted to the 250-year history of the State Hermitage and its masterpieces. The entire façade of the General Staff Building became a great screen for a dynamic three-dimensional show telling about the most significant and dramatic episodes in Russian history, which the museum witnessed and was directly involved in.
Laying Flowers on the Tomb of Catherine the Great in the SS Peter and Paul Cathedral
The birthday of the State Hermitage is traditionally celebrated on 7 December, the Russian Orthodox Day of St Catherine. The celebrations on that day began with the laying of flowers on Catherine the Great’s tomb in the SS Peter and Paul Cathedral.
Google Congratulates the State Hermitage
On 7 December 2014, the museum’s birthday, Google’s Russian-language home page carried a celebratory doodle in honour of the Hermitage.
#ERMITAZH250 Action on Twitter
On 7 December 2014 Russia’s museums carried out the #ERMITAZH250 action on the Twitter social network to celebrate the birthday of the State Hermitage.
Congratulations from the State Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts
For 7 December 2014 the State Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts prepared a congratulatory video in which the masterpieces of the Moscow museum congratulate the Hermitage on its 250th anniversary.
The Art Newspaper Russia Congratulates the State Hermitage
For the Hermitage’s jubilee The Art Newspaper Russia produced an entertaining infographic embracing the 250 years of the museum’s existence.
TASS’s “Hermitage–250” Special Multimedia Project
On 7 December 2014, to mark the 250th anniversary of the Hermitage, the TASS Russia News Agency launched a special multimedia project “Hermitage–250” – a quiz game consisting of ten riddles about the country’s main museum.
3rd International Cultural Forum
Between 7 and 9 December 2014 St Petersburg hosted the 3rd International Cultural Forum. This year it was devoted to the 250th anniversary of the Hermitage and the days when it was operating coincided with the museum’s main celebrations.
Presentation of the Results of the Restoration of the Spare House of the Winter Palace
On 7 December 2014 the Hermitage presented the Spare House of the Winter Palace (also known as the Skliayev House) which had been restored for the museum’s 250th anniversary. The project to repair and restore this part of the Hermitage complex began in 2012. In the course of the restoration work was carried out to reconstruct and strengthen the building. The Spare House, or Laboratory, Storage and Administrative Block, at 30A Palace Embankment, contains restoration workshops, the stores of research departments and other service facilities. The building is ready for operations and completely adapted to modern usage.
Ceremonial Opening of Shuvalov Passage
On 7 December 2014 Vladimir Medinsky, the Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation, and Mikhail Piotrovsky, General Director of the State Hermitage, viewed the Small Hermitage exhibition complex and Shuvalov Passage. It is planned that visitors will have access to the Small Hermitage through a separate entrance located on Shuvalov Passage. The passage itself will soon be open to the public after decades of service use only. It will also be able to act as an additional entrance to the eastern part of the main Hermitage complex, thus balancing visitor flows.
Opening of the Permanent Displays in the General Staff
On 7 December 2014 the halls of the Eastern Wing of the General Staff building were opened to the public after restoration to house a new museum complex that will present 19th-century painting, the works of the Impressionists and Post-Impressionists from the famous Shchukin and Morozov collections and collections of Russian and European decorative and applied art. Special areas have been organized for the display of contemporary art, the Museum of Decorations, the Museum of the Guards and the Fabergé Rooms. The display zone includes restored historical interiors – the state rooms of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Empire, the private apartments of Chancellor Karl Nesselrode and the premises of the Ministry of Finance.
Hermitage Ball 2. Party in the General Staff
On 7 December 2014, Orthodox St Catherine's Day, when the Hermitage traditionally celebrates its birthday, the General Staff building was the venue for a grand party -- the Hermitage Ball 2. The guests were representatives of official delegations, the scholarly and cultural community and participants in the St Petersburg International Forum. The museum’s permanent and temporary displays were opened for them.
Hermitage Ball 3. Party in the Winter Palace
On 7 December 2014, Orthodox St Catherine's Day, when the Hermitage traditionally celebrates its birthday, the Winter Palace was the venue for a grand party - the Hermitage Ball 3. The guests were representatives of official delegations, the scholarly and cultural community and participants in the St Petersburg International Forum. The museum’s permanent and temporary displays were opened for them.
A Gift from Dmitry Medvedev, the Chairman of the Government, to the State Hermitage
On 7 December 2014, the Hermitage’s birthday, at a formal reception to mark the museum’s 250th anniversary, Vladimir Medinsky, the Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation, presented to the Hermitage on behalf of Dmitry Medvedev, the Chairman of the Government, a portrait of Grigory Orlov by the outstanding Italian painter Stefano Torelli.
A Gift of the Transsoyuz Charitable Foundation to the State Hermitage
On 7 December 2014 a priceless historical relic – the personal briefcase used by Emperor Alexander I for formal occasions at the Congress of Vienna in 1814 – was presented at the formal reception to mark the museum’s 250th anniversary by the Transsoyuz charitable foundation. The briefcase comes from the collection of Maria Feodorovna, the wife of Alexander III, and is undoubtedly of enormous artistic and historic-cultural value.
A Gift from David Yakobashvili to the State Hermitage
On 7 December 2014, at the formal reception to mark the museum’s 250th anniversary, the Hermitage received as a gift from David Yakobashvili a relief by Aubert Henri Joseph Parent that includes a depiction of Catherine the Great.
