The occasion for our meeting with Elena Orlova, Director of the I. I. Mashkov Volgograd Museum of Fine Arts, member of the Union of Artists of the Russian Federation and Honored Worker of Culture of the Russian Federation, was her business trip to Belgium for an international museum conference. The influence of digital technologies on museum education and the creation of content for new means of presenting information in an art museum were far from the only topics and events of this business forum. A person open to everything new, Orlova is ready to interpret interesting European experience for Russian realities. This is all the more relevant because Russian and Volgograd museums face the task of modernisation. That is what our conversation is about.
“We did not part with our cameras,” Elena Orlova says. “Along with photographing museum masterpieces and art objects, we photographed, for example, how lighting is arranged in the halls and even the construction and placement of fire hydrants.”
— God is in the details? 
— Yes. For example, at the entrance to one of the museums in Bruges there were light folding chairs. Visitors could calmly take them, carry them in their hand, and, if they became tired, sit in front of the paintings while listening to the guide. By the way, we ourselves found such care very useful, because we walked from morning till evening and literally could no longer feel our legs.
— Did different mentalities interfere with perception?
— Belgium is a very museum-oriented country. A provincial town or an industrial metropolis will certainly boast several museums of completely different profiles. It was pleasant to see that all of them, whether they are located in the centre of the capital or on the outskirts of the country, are in the zone of active attention from the authorities, townspeople and numerous tourists.
— Was what you saw very different from Russian realities?
— I was struck by the careful attitude toward cultural heritage and, at the same time, the striving for everything new. In Ghent, behind a beautifully restored thirteenth-century façade, we saw an ultra-modern hotel interior with space-age lifts and restaurants. The same can be said about museums: tourists who gaze with delight at Bosch and Bruegel visit exhibitions of contemporary art with no less interest and enjoy modern art objects. In Antwerp we became acquainted with the Rubens House, the Museum of Contemporary Art, and the new MAS museum — the Museum aan de Stroom, the Museum of Antwerp’s cultural heritage. It is a very interesting monument of contemporary architecture, an unusual ten-storey structure near the port. It was built fairly quickly with funds from the state, foreign and private investors.
— The money problem exists always and everywhere?
— Of course. But here is a wonderful detail: the local community there expressed gratitude to every sponsor. Metal casts of hands were placed on the museum wall, symbolising the hand of the giver. We were shown: this is the hand of a representative of an international foundation that made a substantial contribution. And this is the hand of a group of girlfriends who donated to the museum’s construction all the savings they had put aside for a holiday. In this small detail there is a reverent attitude both of sponsors toward the museum and of the museum toward its sponsors.
— What do visitors there expect from museums?
— We were told that when townspeople were surveyed about what they liked most in the museum, it turned out that the most interesting thing was the organisation of the depository. Usually storage areas are hidden from outside eyes; only selected employees may be there. Only thanks to the installation of special equipment does everyone who wishes gain access to the depository. The exhibits are protected by armoured glass and mesh. Drawings lie in special chests of drawers: open drawers at random and look, but you cannot touch anything; everything is under glass. For the most meticulous viewers, a virtual version of the works of art is offered. It is always interesting to look into the holy of holies. Especially since it is human nature to think that the most interesting and important things are hidden behind walls.
— And the conclusion?
— Of course, the Volgograd museum will not build a new ten-storey building tomorrow — although one would like to hope that one day this will happen. But we have already placed light folding chairs for visitors in the hall on Chuikov Street!
— Bravo, Elena Vladimirovna. What other ideas did you borrow from the “infidels”?
— I will tell you what I envy: the attitude toward museums. A small museum-country, several museums in every city. And everywhere there are people: tourists, local residents. That is what we must strive for. Moreover, both classical art and contemporary art are in demand. Installations and multimedia presentations can sometimes be ambiguous, unusual and debatable. But the more I watched them, the more convinced I became of the need to open a venue for contemporary art in Volgograd. I hope that in the very near future we will try to delight or stir up the townspeople with such an experience.
— Forgive me, but are there enough premises for that? Especially since everyone knows that both the Museum of Fine Arts on Lenin Avenue and the hall on Chuikov Street badly need reconstruction.
— First of all we need additional premises for storing the collections. Under that condition we will structure all our work very well. Our building on Lenin Avenue is perfectly suited for exhibitions of academic, classical art. The hall on Chuikov Street is for showing non-traditional, new forms. I am afraid to speak about repair prospects so as not to jinx them.
The main thing is that over the last two years a first-class professional team has formed in our museum. Through joint efforts we can work toward creating a kind of museum cluster in Volgograd. We very much want to open an international research centre for the legacy of Ilya Mashkov. We have the right to this not only because we possess the world’s second largest collection of works by our fellow countryman and one of the first Russian avant-garde artists, but also because we have experts on Mashkov’s work. We dream of launching a museum department or presentation platform for contemporary art.
— In recent years you have done a great deal in museum pedagogy and art therapy.
— Yes, in two years our educational programmes for schoolchildren, pensioners and children with disabilities have proved themselves well. These are interactive lessons, tours, lectures, various master classes, musical evenings, and after-school museum programmes. Art therapy is very relevant. So there is plenty to work on. Funds are needed for purchasing works. The impossibility of acquiring works by contemporary authors gives rise to cultural and historical gaps that will be difficult to restore later.
We are planning to open, on the basis of the VMIИ, a virtual branch of the Russian Museum, a centre for museum pedagogy, and a resource centre. The famous Boris Stolyarov responded positively to our readiness to cooperate.
— As far as I know, virtual branches of the Russian Museum have opened in many Russian cities. Has Volgograd’s turn come?
— The computer programmes provided by the Russian Museum expand possibilities for becoming acquainted with art and culture. We will be able to receive electronic catalogues of the Russian Museum’s largest exhibitions. We plan to release, together with the Russian Museum, a virtual version of the exhibition “The Century of the Jack” that recently took place in our museum. This is a unique project, because not everyone can afford to travel often to St. Petersburg. Here Volgograd residents will be able to become acquainted with masterpieces at least in electronic form, take a virtual tour through the collections or restoration workshops, and “wander” through virtual palace interiors. The software package even includes games for the youngest visitors.
Despite all difficulties, I believe that the Volgograd Museum of Fine Arts already truly works for the image of the entire region and deserves to become its bright and resonant landmark.
Yulia Grechukhina,
Volgogradskaya Pravda, No. 215, November 16, 2012
