Russian Museum

The Russian Museum today is a unique repository of artistic treasures, a famous restoration center, a reputable research institute, one of the largest centers of cultural and educational work, a scientific and methodological center for art museums of the Russian Federation, supervising the work of 260 art museums in Russia.

Currently, the collection of the Russian Museum includes more than 400,000 exhibits and covers all historical periods and trends in the development of Russian art, all its main types and genres, directions and schools for more than 1000 years: from the 10th to the 21st centuries.

The main exhibition is located in the Mikhailovsky Palace and the Benois building, which forms part of the palace ensemble. The Russian Museum conducts extensive exhibition activities, including in Russian cities and abroad.
Every year, the museum hosts up to 50 temporary exhibitions, and up to 10, both in Russian cities and abroad. For many exhibitions, catalogues, albums and booklets prepared by research staff of the Russian Museum are published. The museum complex, in addition to the Mikhailovsky Palace with the Benois building and the Rossi wing, also includes the Marble and Stroganov palaces, the Mikhailovsky (Engineers) Castle, as well as unique garden and park ensembles - the Summer Garden with the Summer Palace of Peter I and the Mikhailovsky Garden.

Museum complex
Mikhailovsky Palace.
View from the Benois Arts Square.
View from the embankment of the Griboyedov Canal Mikhailovsky Palace - Benois Building
Inzhenernaya St., 4 (metro stations - "Gostiny Dvor", "Nevsky Prospekt")
Embankment of the Griboyedov Canal, 2 (metro station "Nevsky Prospekt")

The main building of the museum - located in city ​​center, on Arts Square.

It was built according to the design of the famous architect C. Rossi in 1819-1825 and is an outstanding example of a palace ensemble in the style of high classicism (or Empire style, as it is often called). The palace was intended for Grand Duke Mikhail Pavlovich, the fourth son of Emperor Paul I. In 1895, the building was purchased by the treasury and transferred to the established “Russian Museum of Emperor Alexander III”. In 1895-1898, the interior of the palace was rebuilt and adapted for the needs of the museum according to the design of the architect V. Svinin. In connection with the significant expansion of the collection in 1914-1919, according to the design of architects L. Benois and S. Ovsyannikov, the Exhibition Pavilion of the Academy of Arts was built next to the museum, which was named the Benois building after the name of the author of the project.
The main exhibition of the museum is currently located in the Mikhailovsky Palace, the Benois building and the Rossi wing.
Here you can see the works of artists who constitute the glory and pride of Russian art - Andrei Rublev, Dionisy, F. Shubin, D. Levitsky, V. Borovikovsky, K. Bryullov, F. Bruni, O. Kiprensky, A. Ivanov, I. Repin, A. Kuindzhi, I. Shishkin, V. Serov, M. Vrubel, P. Antokolsky, B. Kustodiev, K. Malevich, V. Kandinsky, P. Filonov, M. Chagall, K. Petrov-Vodkin and many others. More...

Stroganov Palace.
View from Nevsky Prospect and the embankment of the Moika River Stroganov Palace
Nevsky Prospekt, 17 (metro station - "Nevsky Prospekt")

The palace, which belonged to the famous Stroganov family, is one of the best examples of Russian Baroque architecture.
The author of the current building, built in 1752-1754, is considered to be F.B. Rastrelli. Famous architects - A. Voronikhin, K. Rossi, P. Sadovnikov, G. Bosse and others - took part in the later reconstructions and design of the interior interiors of the palace. Currently, in the Stroganov Palace, the restoration of the only interior in St. Petersburg that has preserved the decorative design of F.B. Rastrelli has been completed - the Great Dance Hall with a unique ceiling "The Triumph of the Hero" by G. Valeriani, almost untouched by later alterations.
On May 26, 2005, the restored and recreated interior of the Mineralogical Cabinet of the Stroganov Palace was opened, in which a unique collection of minerals of the Stroganov family is exhibited.
Since December 16, 2005, in the restored state halls of the palace there has been a permanent exhibition “Family heirlooms and contributions of the Stroganov family to Russian churches.”
History of the building
Architectural appearance and interiors
Persons

Marble Palace.
Main courtyard Marble Palace
Millionnaya str., 5/1 (metro station - "Nevsky Prospekt")

The palace is a striking example of early classicism architecture.
It was built by order of Catherine II in 1768-1785. architect A. Rinaldi. For the decoration of the external facades and interior decoration of the palace, the architect for the first time in Russia widely used stone - granite and a large number of varieties of marble, as a result of which the palace later received its name - Marble. Initially, the palace was intended by Catherine II as a gift to her favorite Count G. Orlov.
However, G. Orlov died before construction was completed. After his death, the palace served as the residence of the grand dukes. One of its last owners was Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich. On the first floor of the palace, in the former chambers of the Grand Duke, in the original interiors of that time, there is a memorial museum of Konstantin Romanov - “K.R.”, a recognized poet of the Silver Age. Since 2001, a permanent exhibition “Collection of St. Petersburg collectors of the Rzhevsky brothers” has been opened in the Marble Palace - a gift from Ya. and I. Rzhevsky to the State Russian Museum.

In 1994, an equestrian statue of Alexander III, created by sculptor P. Trubetskoy, was installed in front of the palace. In 1995, the “Ludwig Museum in the Russian Museum” was opened to visitors in the Marble Palace.
It was based on works by contemporary artists from Europe, Russia and America, donated to the Russian Museum by famous German collectors Peter and Irena Ludwig. "Museum Ludwig in the Russian Museum" is a permanent exhibition of art from the late 20th century, which makes it possible to trace the development of Russian art in the context of world artistic culture. History of the building
Architectural appearance and interiors
Personalities

Mikhailovsky Castle.
View from Sadovaya Street Mikhailovsky Castle
Sadovaya Street, 2 (metro station - "Gostiny Dvor", "Nevsky Prospekt")

Built in 1797-1801.
designed by architects V. Brenn and V. Bazhenov as the ceremonial residence of Emperor Paul I. The emperor himself took part in its design. The castle received its name in honor of the heavenly patron of the House of Romanov - Archangel Michael. This is the only palace building in Russia in the style of romantic classicism. After the assassination of Emperor Paul I, which occurred in the castle on the night of March 11-12, 1801, the castle came under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of the Imperial Household.
In 1823, the Nikolaev Engineering School was located here, which gave the castle its second name - Engineering. Since 1991, the Russian Museum has been carrying out a comprehensive restoration of the monument and its interiors.
In 2001 - 2002 An exceptionally complex reconstruction of part of the fortifications that previously surrounded the castle was carried out - fragments of the Resurrection Canal and the Three-Span Bridge, preserved underground, were discovered. Historical research, archaeological work and a unique architectural project ensured the implementation of a one-of-a-kind reconstruction of the engineering and technical complex of the 18th century - one of the central urban planning ensembles of St. Petersburg during the reign of Paul I. History of the building
Architectural appearance and interiors
Personalities

Summer Garden.
Main alley Summer Garden
Emb.

Kutuzova, 2 (metro station - "Nevsky Prospekt") The Summer Garden with a collection of sculptures and the Summer Palace, as the first imperial summer residence, form a single museum complex.

The garden was the favorite brainchild of Peter I. Work on its construction began in 1704. Time has greatly changed the appearance of the garden, but its original regular layout has fully survived to our time. History of the creation of the museum.
In the historical outline of the chronological events of the cultural life of Russia, there are phenomena that have enduring significance.
These undoubtedly include the establishment and opening of the Russian Museum. The idea of ​​organizing a state museum of national art has been expressed and discussed in the educated circles of Russian society since the middle of the 19th century.
Already at the end of the 1880s, Russian society was faced with the question of the need to create a museum of Russian national art, as required by “the modern prosperity of Russian art and the high position occupied by Russia in the educated world” (Note from Chief Marshal Prince S. Trubetskoy to the Minister of the Imperial Court , 1889). Art critic V. Stasov, director of the Imperial Hermitage A. Vasilchikov, writer I. Goncharov and many others spoke and wrote about this. In 1889, the question of founding a public museum of national art in St. Petersburg seemed to be finally resolved.
Legend connects this decision of Alexander III with the painting by I. Repin “Nicholas of Myra delivers three innocently condemned people from death,” acquired by the emperor from the 17th exhibition of the Association of Itinerants (1889). At the same time, according to one of his contemporaries, the sovereign expressed the idea of ​​founding a national museum in which all the best works of art would be concentrated. The historical uniqueness of the situation was that the idea was “fueled” by the coincidence of national-patriotic aspirations of both the country’s democratic public and the ruling monarch himself.
We can say that there was an objective need to create a new, state museum in the capital, which could actively operate both in the sphere of history and in the sphere of modern artistic process. This is what the Russian Museum of Emperor Alexander III was intended to become, and subsequently became, for which a suitable building was so successfully found - the Mikhailovsky Palace, a unique architectural monument of Russian classicism of the first third of the 19th century. The young Emperor Nicholas II carried out what his father had planned, signing on April 13, 1895 the Personalized Highest Decree No. 62 “On the establishment of a special institution called the “Russian Museum of Emperor Alexander III” and on the presentation for this purpose of the Mikhailovsky Palace acquired by the treasury with all its outbuildings, services and garden.
The decree began with the words: “Our unforgettable Parent, in his wise concern for the development and prosperity of Russian art, foresaw the need for the formation in St. Petersburg of an extensive Museum in which outstanding works of Russian painting and sculpture would be concentrated.” At the same time, a commemorative medal was executed on the occasion of the establishment of the Russian Museum of Emperor Alexander III. In May 1895, the “Commission to supervise the repair and adaptation of the Mikhailovsky Palace for the premises of the Russian Museum of Emperor Alexander III” was organized and the reconstruction of the palace premises for future museum exhibitions began according to the project and under the leadership of the architect V. F. Svinin, approved by the Commission.
Since its foundation, the museum has been under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of the Imperial Household.
The museum manager was appointed by the Supreme Nominal Decree and must certainly be a member of the Imperial House. In the newly established museum, Nicholas II appointed Grand Duke Georgiy Mikhailovich as the Highest Administrator. Already in the preparatory period, before the opening of the museum, a number of important issues related to its future activities were resolved, and its priority goals and objectives were determined.
Nicholas II ordered the Main Treasury to open a special paragraph in the estimate of the Imperial Court for a loan for the Museum for the maintenance of the Mikhailovsky Palace. The Regulations on the Russian Museum of Emperor Alexander III stated that the museum was founded in memory of Emperor Alexander III, “with the goal of uniting everything related to His Personality and the history of His Reign, and to present a clear concept of the artistic and cultural state of Russia.” In August 1897, the staff of the museum was approved.
At the origins of the museum were well-educated people, often graduated from more than one higher educational institution - scientists, art historians, historians, ethnographers, archaeologists, architects: D. I. Tolstoy (appointed in 1901 to the post of Fellow Manager of the Russian Museum), A. N. Benois, P. A. Bryullov, P. I. Neradovsky, N. P. Sychev, P. I. Stolpyansky, M. P. Botkin, A. A. Miller, N. N. Punin and many others. The educational qualifications of an employee of the Russian Museum were very high, so the candidacy of each new employee was seriously discussed - it was a kind of competition. One of the explanatory notes to the draft Regulations on the Museum says: “... when organizing the Museum, one must keep in mind the indispensable requirement that service in such a wonderful institution be considered the greatest honor, and that they strive for it precisely because of the honor of being involved in the museum " Of course, the work of major art historians and museum workers, restorers and architects contributed to the glorification of the Russian Museum.
Nevertheless, there was an institution of ordinary employees. To perform various kinds of official duties, the Russian Museum of Emperor Alexander III had a staff of civilian servants who were at the disposal of the head of the museum buildings (who is also the secretary of the August Manager of the museum). The staff of the museum in February 1898 included watchmen, gallery attendants, sentries, doormen, a church watchman, as well as workers of various specialties (carpenter, mechanic, fireman, painter, stove maker, gardener, etc.). All of them were subordinate to a certain hierarchy, had their own responsibilities formulated in the “Rules of Museum Employees” (1897), and a specially designed form. The lists of museum employees invariably mention a priest - Father Jacob Arsenyev, who developed the Regulations on the Church at the Russian Museum.
In addition, during the performance of priestly duties at the Church of the Russian Museum, I. Arsenyev in 1901-1909. A number of metropolitan publications published articles and notes concerning the history of the church and the museum. On March 7 (19), 1898, the grand opening of the “Russian Museum of Emperor Alexander III” took place for visitors.
In a letter from Nicholas II to Grand Duke George on the occasion of the opening of the museum and in connection with the third anniversary of its establishment, it says: “Three years ago, charging Myself with the sacred duty of fulfilling the cherished desire in the Bose of My deceased Parent to see collected together the most outstanding works of Russian painting and sculptures, I ordered the establishment of the Museum of His Name and at the same time entrusted to you the direct management of this establishment. Having devoted Yourself with tireless zeal to this complex and arduous task, You took care of the proper adaptation of the building of the Mikhailovsky Palace intended by me for this purpose and in a short time collected and put into order those works of art that were to be placed in the museum on the basis of the Regulations approved by Me. <...> In fairness, attributing the significant success in this good undertaking to the enlightened leadership of Your Imperial Highness, I consider it my gratifying duty to express My sincere gratitude to you, and I also express the Monarchy’s gratitude to your gifted employees in the implementation of such a truly patriotic task.” On the opening day of the museum, its exhibition was presented in 37 halls (21 halls on the first floor and 16 on the second).
The first visitors could get acquainted with the “Museum of Christian Antiquities”, which occupied 4 halls, with the “Shroud” by V. Vasnetsov, works of Russian painting and sculpture, as well as with the collections of private collectors donated to the newly established museum (a collection of watercolors by Princess M. Tenisheva and collection of paintings and engravings of Prince V. Lobanov-Rostovsky). The museum's collection, which was based on objects and works transferred from the Imperial Palaces, the Hermitage and the Academy of Arts, totaled 1880 works during this period.
According to the original structure, the museum had three departments: - a department “specially dedicated to the memory of Emperor Alexander III”,
- an ethnographic and artistic-industrial department,
- an art department.
Moreover, the priority role of the art department was specifically stipulated: “... before the compilation of ethnographic and historical collections, the art department of the museum must be immediately established, which should include a collection of paintings and statues of the best Russian artists.”
The memorial department was a memorial one and was supposed to occupy an important place in the structure of the museum.
However, the construction of the premises for the Memorial Department was delayed, and due to subsequent historical and political events in the country, it was never opened. The historical and everyday life department that was formed in its place in 1934 was partially transferred to the Hermitage and formed the basis of the department of Russian culture of this museum. The ethnographic department existed as part of the Russian Museum until 1934, when it was separated into an independent State Museum of Ethnography of the Peoples of the USSR.
Thus, the name “Russian Museum” was initially and traditionally assigned, essentially, only to the art department located in the Mikhailovsky Palace.
Over time, the art department, gradually branching out, turned into a complex museum organism, currently numbering about 50 departments, sectors, divisions and services.