International Museum Day 2014

How to relax on the weekend? Go to nature, go to the movies, read a book at home ... A lot of classes. But how often do you want to visit the museum? And if it does, then when is it better to do it? In order to at least once not even think about when and where to go, and a holiday was created - the International Museum Day. And it turns out, museums are not only naphthalene and silence. Today it is possible to spend with interest not only the day, but also the night.

Do you like museums, how do I love them?

People are divided into two categories: those who like to visit museums, and those who are not forced to go there. As a rule, the second was unlucky in childhood. At school, they were forcibly taken on excursions, where the old grandmother-guide was boringly repeating the same repeated words for years. The children were bored, they began to be naughty, they were scolded. Also it was necessary to stand, having bowed down, and to expect, when it will be possible to leave these infinite halls, to leave on street and to run. The second category of children, because of their natural curiosity, still caught the aura of the museum and was imbued with interest in the lecture. But, alas, as statistics show, the first is still more.

Perhaps this is one of the reasons that prompted the creation of the International Day of Museums. But it was thanks to him that he had an opportunity to show the world of museums from a different, not so boring and monotonous side. But first things first.

Such different museums

Having spent time and money, having received a charge of boredom and dust, people are perplexed: "To whom it may be interesting?" Such, sometimes rhetorical, question set the unsuccessful excursionists.

It is not superfluous to recall that museums appeared as early as 290 BC. And their history has not been interrupted, but, on the contrary, is actively developing. The very word "museum" originated from the Greek museum, in translation into Russian it is literally "the house of the muses". Initially, these were mostly some kind of private collections. But over time they expanded and changed. There was a need to exhibit them on public display. So from personal possessions they moved to public places. In the modern world, most of the museums are former private collections. Various motives encouraged people to collect them and flaunt them. But this is not important. It is important that now anyone can find the museum to their own taste and interests. Undoubtedly, such a long history only confirms the necessity and importance of museums for the modern world.

Today it is difficult even to imagine everything that visitors are invited to familiarize themselves with in museums. Expositions are so different that sometimes there is no limit to the surprise. The thematic focus of museums extends from classical (historical, artistic and art history) collections to highly unusual and extraordinary: food, eroticism, torture and even, excuse me, feces. But no matter how the exhibits attract visitors, all of them are united by one common holiday - the International Museum Day.

Excursion to the history

St. Petersburg is not just rich in museums. The historic city itself is like one huge museum. And in 1977, then Leningrad, once again secured the highly esteemed title of the Cultural Capital of Russia.

This year, Moscow and Leningrad hosted the 11th General Conference of the International Council of Museums (ICOM). And it was on it, at the suggestion of the Soviet delegation, it was decided to establish the International Museum Day. The history of the holiday dates back to May 18, 1977.

Theme of holidays

Every year the interest to the holiday increased. There were more and more people wishing to take part in the events. And by 1992 it was decided to unite the whole museum community around one theme: "Museums and the environment." Since that time, the founders of the celebration each year initiate a new and interesting topic, which all participants adhere to. The international day of museums in 2014 was marked by the words: "Museum collections unite".

And until this year, the organizers of the holiday have always tried to focus on actual public problems. So, in recent years, the following topics have been selected:

• In 2009 - "Museums and tourism".
• In 2010 - "Museums in the name of social harmony."
• In 2011 - "Museums and Memory".
• In 2012 - "Museums in a changing world. New challenges, new inspiration "(in honor of the 35th anniversary of the holiday).
• The past, 2013, was devoted to the theme "Museums (Memory + Creativity) = Social Change".

Every year, the holiday is getting bigger and growing. There are new participants. And in 2011 the site was created, the slogan was invented. The International Day of Museums is congratulated by workers in this field: guides, restorers, custodians and caretakers on all continents of the Earth, in more than one hundred countries of the world.

Night at the Museum

The International Museum Day is officially celebrated on May 18. But on the eve of this date there is one more, no less interesting event, which is closely connected with it.

Since the 70s of the last century, European museums have introduced the tradition of "open doors" for visitors to popularize art. In such days, the exposition could be viewed for free. The number of people wishing to visit the museum was so great that it was necessary to extend the working day. This action was called "Spring in the Museum".

Later, in 1997, in Berlin such an event was held at night. "A long night in the museum" - it was under this name that it went down in history. And already in Paris since 2001, night visits to exhibitions have become a kind of festivities. When the International Museum day could no longer fully satisfy the interest of all comers, the visitors were helped by Night at the Museum.

It is held in the closest to May 18 night from Saturday to Sunday. At this time, the doors of museums are open to all comers, the attention of which is represented by various programs, theatrical productions, lectures and so on.

The Moscow festival

The International Museum Day in 2014 was not without a "night" in Moscow. More than 250 museums of the capital of Russia opened their doors to visitors, of whom there were about 300 thousand. In addition to stationary exhibitions, visitors were invited to the city sites. For the first time modern Russian and foreign artists, photographers were exhibited at them. Theaters represented new and already favorite scenery performances.

Museum holiday in Belarus

One of the hundreds of countries participating in the International Day of Museums is Belarus. In 2014, for the tenth time the inhabitants of Belarus had the opportunity to celebrate the holiday. However, traditionally, most of the country's museums invited visitors to the dark during the day.

About 130 museums of the country celebrated the International Day of Museums in Belarus. Each of them presented an original unique program. Unfortunately, not all adhered to the tradition of free exhibitions, but this did not prevent residents and guests from enjoying what they saw.

One of the most curious programs was presented by the Art Museum of Minsk. In order to get here, many people had to stand the line. But, as attending the event, it was worth it. At half-past midnight, the group "Silver Wedding" performed in front of the audience. The exhibition halls offered various surprises, including an interactive installation based on the works of Chaim Soutine. And the one who had enough determination to withstand the queue, had the opportunity to try to repeat with the help of modern technologies one of the artist's numerous works. The event lasted until 5am. And this is just a drop in the sea of the variety that reigned during the holiday.

A look into the future

Museums are not just old forgotten things. Museums are a kind of living organisms whose purpose is to strengthen the interconnection between people around the world. These are the threads connecting the past, the present and the future.

The modern world is changing at a tremendous speed. And people just do not keep track of what is happening around. It is in this movement that the museum should remain a point that allows us to look back in the past, assess the present and believe in the future. Therefore, the relevance of such holidays, as the International Museum Day, is only growing.