Soak in the arts and heritage this International Museum Day with our essential guide to the best online and offline activities at cultural hubs across the city and country
The Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque in Istanbul
Learn with art
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F S Aijazuddin
The Museum Society of Mumbai will be hosting a talk by Lahore-based art historian FS Aijazuddin. He says, “My lecture is on the tours made in India from 1858 to 1861 by Charlotte Lady Canning with her husband Governor-General Lord Canning. Charlotte was a keen observer and a skilled watercolourist who has left behind a large number of paintings, supported by vivid descriptions in her journals.” The lecture will be based on Aijazuddin’s book, Sketches from a Howdah, that presents a look at the 19th century through Lady Canning’s watercolour work, journals
and correspondences.
On: May 19, 5.30 pm
Log on to: @museumsocietyofmumbai on Instagram to register
Women in Maritime
Anita Yewale and Sanjam Gupta
Today is also the first International Day for Women in Maritime. On this occasion, Maritime Mumbai Museum Society (MMMS) will host an online talk with a panel of distinguished women from the industry including Captain Suneha Gadpande, the first woman to captain an all-woman crew on India’s cargo ship MT Swarna Krishna; Sonali Banerjee, the first Indian woman marine engineer; and Sanjam Gupta, director of Sitara Shipping and founder, Maritime SheEO.
(From left) Sonali Banerjee and Capt Suneha Gadpande
“These women broke gender stereotypes to achieve success and paved the way for young Indian women to pursue a career in the Maritime sector,” shares Anita Yewale, head of outreach programme, MMMS.
On: May 19, 5.30 pm
Log on to: @maritimemms on Instagram
A day at the museum
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (CSMVS) kicks off activities with demonstrations on miniature paintings, storytelling through Kaavads, stone tool technology and taxidermy. Check out the activities station to explore hieroglyphs, Brahmi and Greek scripts, and design an ancient coin. If you want to deepen your knowledge of the arts, curator-led tours will make a stop at gallery sections including Thanjavur paintings, Mumbai in a box, and more.
On: Today, 10.30 am onwards
At: Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, MG Road.
Get involved
Kids at the gateway of Bara Imambara, Lucknow
Check out the Ministry of Culture’s Instagram page for fun facts and contests around International Museum Day. Some highlights are the #MuseumMemories challenge, urging viewers to share their memories of museum visits, and the #MuseumsReimagined initiative where you can recreate a
famous artwork.
Log on to: @ministryofculturegoi on Instagram and Facebook
Culture connect
Gauri Pathare. Pic/gauripathare.in
Join National Gallery of Modern Art, Mumbai, for a week-long celebration. Lined up are workshops, walkthroughs and more. Catch a concert of Hindustani classical music today by Gauri Pathare, Pushkaraj Joshi on the tabla and Supriya Joshi on the harmonium. Also on schedule this week is a film screening, and a walk-through of ‘Shakti’ — a retrospective series on Rini Dhumal.
Till: May 20
At: National Gallery of Modern Art, Fort.
Building a community
Tejshvi Jain
For folks in museum leadership, outreach, education and programming teams, register for ReReeti Foundation’s The Power of Museum Volunteers workshop that will discuss building a successful volunteer programme. Tejshvi Jain, founder-director at ReReeti Foundation, tells us, “We believe in engaging the community in museum spaces not just as an audience, but in the programming of museum activities.” She highlights the importance of such programmes as volunteers get to see the functioning of museums, and are directly involved in the setting up of exhibitions and
creative processes.
On: May 24, 4 pm
Log on to: @rereetifoundation on Instagram
What is International Museum Day?
The NGMA app
The International Council of Museums (ICOM) established May 18 as International Museum Day back in 1977 to “increase public awareness of the role of museums in the development of society”. This year’s theme — The Power of Museums — will facilitate the day’s core ideas including opening minds to various perspectives and building a better future.
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