On 30 May 2019, the 21st Intermuseum international festival opened in the Manege Central Exhibition Hall in Moscow.
Participating in the opening ceremony and the festival’s plenary session were Vladimir Tolstoi, advisor to the President of the Russian Federation; Alla Manilova, secretary of state, Deputy Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation; Mikhail Piotrovsky, General Director of the State Hermitage and President of the Union of Museums of Russia; Vladislav Kononov, Director of the Department of Museums at the Ministry of Culture; Alexander Kibovsky, minister of the Government of Moscow, Head of the City of Moscow’s Department of Culture; Narmin Shiraliyeva, Minister of Culture for Moscow Region; Sergei Yemelyanov, Minister of Culture, Tourism and Archival Affairs for the Republic of Komi; and Yelena Kalnitskaya, General Director of the Peterhof State Museum Preserve, who is chairing the festival jury.
“Intermuseum is a remarkable occasion,” Vladimir Tolstoi said at the start of the ceremony. “It is a time when we can all get together. During the year members of the museums’ staff work very intensely. Intermuseum is a setting where we can at last meet each other and tell about our achievements.” He read out greetings from Vladimir Putin, the President of the Russian Federation. The letter stated: “In our country, the development of the museum sphere receives particular attention from the state. For that reason, it is symbolic that such an event is held specifically in Russia and specifically in Moscow. This is a venue for discussing a broad range of issues, but the festival is also famed for its rich cultural programme involving a large number of people, the greater part of them children.”
“The festival is indeed a real celebration, A celebration of museum unity, a celebration for all the people who cannot imagine their life without museums. It is a celebration unparalleled anywhere in the world,” Alla Manilova added.
“I would like in beginning our work today to remind you of two things,” Mikhail Piotrovsky said. “Firstly, we must not forget about the three foundations of what museums do: those are preserving memory; instilling good taste and instilling a sense of one’s own historical worth. Secondly there is a certain conception that all the things that are in museums are dead. That is a polemical statement that we should argue with.” The Hermitage Director also issued a reminder of one of the most important tasks that needs to be resolved in the immediate future – the provision of state guarantees for the insurance of exhibitions.
The theme of the festival this year is “A Dialogue of Professionals” and the stress is being placed on professional discussions. The State Hermitage, as is traditional, participated in the festival and prepared a special programme in accordance with the declared theme.
The Hermitage is one of the world’s foremost and largest museums. Its collections, numbering more than 3,000,000 items, are a mighty seam of the world’s cultural heritage. Its encyclopaedic character makes it possible to present the history of world culture from ancient times to the present day. Without doubt, all aspects of the Hermitage’s activities are of particular interest to the staff of museums and other cultural institutions. The museum opened a Hermitage Academy on its stand and invited museums from across the country to enrol in it and discuss archaeology, exhibition projects, interaction between museums, work with the public, questions of expanding museum stocks and much more.
The Intermuseum international festival is the main museum event of the year. The festival has been held by the Ministry of Culture of the RF since 1999.
