Russia, the cry of museums: restore dialogue

Russian museums are taking a stand and calling on their country to restore dialogue. This was stated in a statement by ICOM Russia, the national committee of the International Council of Museums, which looks after the interests of the country’s museums. “ICOM Russia,” the statement reads, “is extremely concerned about what is happening and supports the restoration of peaceful dialogue and the initiation of cooperation to resolve the conflict as soon as possible in order to reduce the number of human casualties as much as possible. Separately, we note the need to preserve the historical and cultural heritage and hope that the provisions of the 1954 Hague Convention will be strictly observed.” ICOM Russia refers to the document, signed by both Russia and Ukraine(more information here), which is supposed to prevent destruction to cultural heritage, of which, however, there is currently no information.

There are many cultural institutions in Russia calling for peace. The most striking gesture so far has been that of the Garage Museum of Contemporary Art in Moscow, the museum founded by Daša Žukova and Roman Abramovič which, while remaining open to the public, decided to suspend its exhibition-related activities as a form of protest. But several museums have aligned themselves with ICOM’s position. This morning it was the turn of the Pushkin Museum in Moscow, one of the country’s leading collections of ancient art, which said in a note, “We are shocked by the speed of events in recent days. The Museum, as an institution of memory and culture, will make every effort to create an opportunity for peaceful and mutually respectable dialogue for faster reconciliation of people expressing different views but striving to minimize human sacrifice and suffering. We believe that the space of culture is the best place for it. We also support the position of ICOM Russia, continue our work and believe that our activity and communication with you is especially important now. We look forward to seeing you in the halls and on our online resources.”

Similar words also came from GES-2, another major contemporary art institute, which was hosting an exhibition by the great Icelandic artist Ragnar Kjartansson, who decided to close the show prematurely. “As a cultural institution,” GES-2 writes, “the GES-2 House of Culture cannot turn a blind eye to the tragic events we have all become witnesses to. GES-2 respectfully considers both the feelings of our audience and the decisions of the artists we work with. In line with this, there will be changes to our program. GES-2 is a cultural institution made by and for people. Each of us is experiencing our own emotions and feelings at the moment. Under these circumstances, all our work will be aimed at bringing people together and supporting our visitors and employees. We will continue to hold those events that are possible to hold.”

Remaining vague is the Russian State Museum in St. Petersburg, which five hours ago posted a quote by artist Katia Margolis, which translated sounds, “Everything touched by light becomes light: we cannot correct the world, but transform it,” posted along with a photo of an 1801 Psyche by neoclassical sculptor Mikhail Kozlovsky. These, at present, are the major Russian museums that have exhibited on the current conflict.

Russia, the cry of museums: restore dialogue

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