History of the Hermitage in the mirror of shop windows

In the year of its 250th anniversary, the Hermitage first opens to the general public one of the premises still unknown to it - the former Manege, located under the Hanging Garden of the Small Hermitage and serving as a repository in Soviet times. It is no accident that the first exhibition organized in this huge hall, which was hiding in the bowels of the museum, was The History of the Hermitage in the Mirror of Showcases.

The idea to make an exposition based on museum windows was proposed by the Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas, and the rare Hermitage collection made it possible to translate it into a large-scale panorama of the museum’s life over its long history.

One of the main topics of the exhibition is museum space as a special artistic and historical phenomenon, reflecting important social and cultural ideas. Any visitor, once in the Hermitage, is in the grip not only of the exhibits, but also of their environment, which was formed thanks to the unique history of the museum. For the first time in museum practice, the theme of the exhibition space becomes the main one in the exhibition project and is revealed with the help of such unusual material - museum display cases. It is the windows, as part of the interior, on the one hand, and as a tool of direct contact with the viewer, and with the exhibit, on the other, that bear the imprint of all previously existing museum views, reflecting, as in a mirror, their history. Showcases became the main participants of the exhibition, showing all stages of the Hermitage from the time of Catherine II to the beginning of the 21st century.

The opening will take place on December 5, 2014 at 16:00.
Manege of the Small Hermitage, entrance from the Main Entrance,
Address: Address: Palace Square 2