National Art Museum of the Republic of Belarus: history, exposition, time to visit

The Belarusian National Museum is a real cultural treasury. At the moment it is not only an impressive exposition of paintings, one of the largest in Eastern Europe, but also a center for scientific and educational projects, and a place for events in honor of contemporary artists. To study the history of this museum is definitely necessary.

History of appearance

The National Art Museum of the Republic of Belarus has an extensive collection, but its history is far from impressive. The State Picture Gallery was opened in 1939. At the heart of her expositions were works from the museums of Vitebsk, Mogilev, Gomel, Minsk, part was donated by the Tretyakov Gallery, the Hermitage. In addition, the collection included canvases from the castles and manors of Western Belarus - slutsk belts from the collection of the Radziwills, French tapestries of the eighteenth century and portrait painting. The years of the Second World War have become a difficult time. Many exhibits were exported from the country, and their history is unknown until now. After the war, work on the collection was started anew. The National Art Museum of Belarus, or rather, at the time of the BSSR, bought the canvases of Kustodiyev, Bryullov, Levitan, and Polenov. Some of the exhibits were transferred to the galleries of St. Petersburg and Moscow. In 1957, the exhibition was opened in a new building, which was built on the project of Mikhail Baklanov. The facade is decorated with sculptures-allegories depicting painting, sculpture and fame. This building is one of the first in the history of Soviet architecture. At the moment, his image is used on a banknote in a thousand rubles. Throughout its existence, the National Art Museum of the Republic of Belarus collects new masterpieces from private collections, works in the genre of icon painting and the best works of Belarusian masters. For the last decades it has turned into a complex with five branches, two of which are located not in Minsk - in Golshany and in the World.

New building

The National Art Museum in Minsk has grown so much that by the end of the twentieth century it needed a new room. All departments, lecture rooms and other office space were moved to neighboring buildings. For the museum created a new building, which combines past features and modern architecture. Designer Vitaly Belyankin designed an interior with classic arches and columns, decorated with stucco molding, and as a ceiling a glass dome protrudes. The area of the new building is almost nine thousand square meters. Besides the exposition, which is owned by the National Art Museum of the Republic of Belarus, there are restoration workshops and storerooms. A special tour allows you to watch the process of restoration of paintings. The new halls served as a platform for the demonstration of ancient and modern Belarusian art, as well as artifacts from Western Europe and Russia.

Exposition today

Every year many tourists visit Minsk. The National Art Museum is a good choice for a walk in one of the days in the capital. It is constantly evolving and today presents to the attention of visitors more than thirty thousand exhibits, which include twenty thematic collections and two collections of national and world art, including unique items of masters of the East of the fifteenth century. In the museum you can see ancient icons, Belarusian sculpture and handmade fabrics, nineteenth-century paintings and arts and crafts. The branch is the "House of Wankowicz", where the culture of the beginning of the century before last is presented. Another one is the Museum of Belarusian Folk Art. There is also a branch dedicated to the work of Byalynitsky-Biruli. The National Art Museum of the Republic of Belarus is engaged in research and restoration work, collects a library fund, accompanied by an electronic catalog with images of all works presented in the expositions. He publishes books and albums. Lectures and interactive tours are constantly held here, and for children there is a creative workshop that has been conducting classes for the last twenty years.

International Projects

The museum also cooperates with foreign colleagues. This allows you to carry out bright projects created together with the Tretyakov Gallery. They bring canvases from Serbia, Ukraine and France. The works of Chagall were presented by the Museum of Israel. Also there was an exhibition of the English project "Royal Treasures", dedicated to Victoria and Albert.

Cost and visit time

Tickets to the museum are quite budgetary - from fifty to one hundred and fifty thousand Belarusian rubles, depending on the desire to take photos. Every last Wednesday in the month you can visit it for free. The entrance to the museum is open from eleven to eighteen thirty, on Tuesdays it is closed.