New digital residents of the Culture Online international project: VR-walk through the Belarusian synagogue, online festival in Bashkir village, virtual trips to leading Russian exhibitions and international cultural and educational events on the Internet.

In September, the library of the Culture Online web portal was replenished with 9 online cultural initiatives from the Republic of Bashkortostan, Nizhny Novgorod, Moscow and St. Petersburg, as well as Belarus and Germany. Special attention is paid to online projects promoting national culture and craft. Thus, the “Live, village!” project, the “Music of the World” festival and the “The Craftsman’s Way” online program have joined the platform.

Details about each of the projects:

Belarus Shtetl: VR tour and reconstruction of the Great Choral Synagogue in Slonim
Center of Belarusian-Jewish Cultural Heritage (Belarus)

Belarus Shtetl is a multimedia project aimed at updating and raising awareness about the architectural and cultural Jewish heritage of Belarus and at rethinking of the history of Belarusian Jews with the help of new technologies and modern means of communication.

Multimedia exposition developed will be able to become the basis for the creation of a Jewish Museum in Belarus. Almost a year’s team work resulted in the creation of a 15-minute virtual tour of the Slonim Synagogue during its heyday (17th – 19th centuries).

Live, village!
Parish of the Church of the Nativity, Akhlystino village (Republic of Bashkortostan)

A series of variously-oriented events, which includes the “Contemporary Art in the village” project, ecological game, workshops, online flash mob and other events, culminating in a holiday festival in the village of Akhlystino of the Republic of Bashkortostan.

The project was created on the basis of the annual holiday “Live, village!” and has already gone beyond the boundaries of the village and the district. It was conceived to revive the village through the revival of folk traditions and rural ancestral folk crafts.

Understanding Music Academy
Understanding Music Academy (Germany)

Practices of effective artistic thinking for students and applicants of musical institutions, professional musicians and art lovers of any age.

Main distinguishing feature of the project is an individual approach to the students, thanks to which they become professionals in the field of understanding art, master artistic thinking and become more confident, successful and happy.

Classes are held in an interactive way, in the form of a dialogue, and include examples from the other art spheres: painting, poetry, dance or photography.

Cultural Exchange
Understanding Music Academy (Germany)

Cultural Exchange video podcast by the musicologist, candidate of art history Anna Fortunova from Hanover and producer of cultural projects Daria Gitelson from Nizhny Novgorod.

In the episodes, experts discuss contemporary art (and especially music), talk about ways to understand art and foster artistic thinking among people of all ages.

Music of the world
Saint Petersburg State Museum of Theater and Music (Saint Petersburg)

In 2021, the International Ethnic Festival “Music of the World” by the St. Petersburg Museum of Theater and Music was held in a hybrid format. Online broadcasts of the festival were held with the support of the VKontakte network on August 14 and 15.

In 2021, as part of the festival, a series of workshops and creative meetings with musicians  took place at the Sheremetiev Palace — Museum of Music. They were devoted to a variety of topics, from harp and balalaika lessons to a concert story about Kazakh national instruments. A series of excursions devoted to Russia’s largest collection of musical instruments also took place. The festival was continued by concerts of internationally recognized masters of ethno-music and their young followers in the Theater For Young Spectator named after Bryantsev.

Virtual tour of exhibitions
Intechtur Cultural and Educational Center (Vyborg)

“Virtual Trip Across Exhibitions” preserves exhibitions even after they are closed, making them available in the virtual environment for an unlimited period – 24/7 in 360-degree format.

The project is designed to promote artists and venues where exhibitions are held: museums, galleries and exhibition halls. Virtual exhibitions might also be interesting for private collections.

Non-museum stories
Saint Petersburg State Museum of Theater and Music (Saint Petersburg)

Short entertaining stories by the staff of the Museum of Theater and Music about the key exhibits, exhibitions and figures of permanent exhibitions – famous actors and musicians.

All the videos can be found in a special playlist on the museum’s YouTube channel.

Summer October
Moscow Innovation Agency (Moscow)

“Summer October” is a cultural and educational project for the citizens and guests of Moscow about places to get a new knowledge, experience and impressions on the summer weekends of 2021.

Headliner and program’s center of attraction is the Start Hub technological area at the “Red October” factory. Since the end of May, more than 3.5 thousand people have participated in the cultural and educational project “Summer October”.

The Artisan’s Way
Ekaterina Zatuliveter (Russia)

Intensive online program where artisans develop their product through reinterpretation of traditions and local cultural codes in cooperation with a mentor designer and a business expert.

The concept of the project is to combine traditions and contemporary design. Its mission is to form a culture of searching for meanings of product creation for artisans.