Between May 23 and 26, 2024, the “International Intermuseum Festival” was held in Moscow, separated into two branches, one dedicated to experts and one dedicated to the public. More than 250 experts participated in the discussions and the public had at their disposal more than 140 cultural and artistic events.
The festival started with the plenary session “Museum means people. Cultural heritage as a driving force for the development of human capital” which was held in the new building of the Tretyakov Gallery on Kadashevskaya Embankment. The Tretyakov Gallery is an important Russian art museum, an art gallery dating back to 1856 and which in terms of visitors is the 3rd most visited nationally.
This year’s Intermuseum has become more pragmatic and professional. We tried to gather all the topics, directions and vectors of debate based on the requests that came from the municipal, regional and federal museums. Thus, we have 80 debates spread over seven venues.
ELENA KHARLAMOVA, DIRECTOR OF THE DEPARTMENT OF MUSEUMS AND EXTERNAL RELATIONS OF THE MINISTRY OF CULTURE OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
(…) it has been repeatedly emphasized that human capital is the main resource for the country’s development. It requires comprehensive attention, especially with regard to youth policy and the education and training of cultural professionals
MIKHAIL SHVYDKOY, SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION FOR INTERNATIONAL CULTURAL COOPERATION
Among the foreign experts were the General Executive Director of the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization, Ahmed Farouk Ghoneim; the director general of the National Museum of Indian Cinema, Devamsam Ramakrishnan, and the acting director of the Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum, Mira Mammadkhanova, who shared their experience in preserving heritage and promoting culture based on national traditions and their integration into modernity.
At Intermuseum, the first national award in the field of museum activity named after D.S. Likhachev was handed. This award brings together all aspects of museum activity: research, conservation, interpretation and presentation of tangible and intangible heritage.
The awards were received by representatives of various museum professions:
- Tatiana Vashchenko, restorer of the Kremlin Museum in Moscow;
- Vera Zdorenko, museum curator of the Tretyakov Gallery;
- Tamara Nosovici, advisor to the director general for accounting and storage of the Peterhof Museum as the best curator;
- Vasili Pankratov, director of the Gatchina Museum;
- Denis Juravlev senior researcher at the Department of Archaeological Monuments of the State History Museum;
- Ekaterina Iakovleva, Head of the Department of Excursions and Scientific and Educational Works of the Sheremetev Palace, a branch of the State Museum of Theater and Music in St. Petersburg.
- The “Museum of the Year” award was given to the United State Museum of the History of the Far East, named after V.K. Arseniev.
The experts discussed how museums can involve not only the professional community, but also the general public in the activity of organizing new projects. Oksana Oracheva, general director of the Vladimir Potanin Foundation, noted that “it is important not only to listen to the opinion of the community, but also to challenge it to experiment”.
During the round table “Cultural heritage. How can a museum update cultural traditions?” experts shared methods of working with young audiences and discussed how to apply formats for presenting information and involving local residents in their work.
In order to attract new visitors to the museum, it is very important to understand the values of today’s young audience. The museum is about the past, about how beautiful it was, what heritage we have. Young people and their parents talk about the future. What kind of people we will be. We are working on how to connect the past and the future.
EKATERINA ZABALDINA, DIRECTOR OF THE KARGOPOL MUSEUM OF HISTORY, ARCHITECTURE AND ART
Tatiana Boronoeva, director of the national museum of the Republic of Buryatia, discussed the rethinking of cultural heritage with the help of museum activity. “My colleagues and I have established a mission, to strengthen the image of Buryatia as a territory of self-knowledge. The purpose of our museum is to seek, preserve and disseminate the experience of a cautious dialogue between people with different worldviews and to show and explain the complex cultural heritage as clearly as possible”.
Victoria Samsonova, deputy director of the Yamalo-Nenets County Museum and the Exhibition Complex named after I.S. Shemanovsky, told how the recreation of ancient games helps familiarize museum visitors with the history of local peoples. “Ancient Games Project is an interactive platform where visitors get acquainted with various board games and games of chance from the past, including games discovered at the archaeological sites of Yamal. These are unique artifacts of material and spiritual culture.”
The forums were attended by both Russian and BRICS and CIS member states, as well as members of the International Council of Museums (ICOM).
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