Amsterdam’s Hermitage museum is to be renamed after cutting ties with Russia following the country’s invasion of Ukraine.
The art museum in the Netherlands will be called H’Art Museum from 1 September. It has also announced new partnerships with institutions including France’s Centre Pompidou, the British Museum and the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, DC.
Last year, the Hermitage decided to sever ties with Russia’s flagship State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg in response to the attack on Ukraine.
“With the invasion of the Russian army in Ukraine, a border has been crossed. War destroys everything. Even 30 years of collaboration,” the museum said in a statement in March 2022.
The Hermitage museum, first opened in 2009, previously relied on the State Hermitage Museum’s collection to stage exhibitions.
However, it will now collaborate with its new partners in France, the UK and the US to open major exhibitions featuring works from their collections.
“It’s an exciting new step for us, a contemporary and future-proof model,” Annabelle Birnie, the museum’s director, said in a new statement.
“We are building on our experience in the international field and are now spreading our wings. Our programming will be multi-voiced reflecting the times we live in.
“We will show major art exhibitions as well as intimate presentations.”
H’Art Museum’s international partnerships
The H’Art Museum’s first major show will be a Kandinsky exhibition in partnership with the Centre Pompidou in mid-2024. In 2026, it will open the British Museum’s ‘Feminine Power’ exhibition.
Russia’s State Hermitage Museum is the second largest art museum in the world and dates back to 1764. It has been open to the public since 1852.
“Like everyone else, we hope for peace,” the Dutch museum said in its statement last year.
“Also for changes in the future of Russia that will allow us to restore ties with the Hermitage Saint Petersburg.”
Lead image credit: Janiek Dam
