New Year message from Director of Contemporary Museum of Calligraphy

Dear friends!

On behalf of the team of the Contemporary Museum of Calligraphy I am excited to wish you a happy New Year!

Saying goodbye to the departing 2018, I would like to thank it for those projects that have been completed, and those that have just started their development. The year proved bright, eventful, interesting and successful in every respect.

Unite people through the art of calligraphy – that's our motto! The anniversary of the Contemporary Museum of Calligraphy gathered friends from all over the world: eminent calligraphy artists and talented people, real enthusiasts of their work, who bring fresh ideas to art. The main calligraphic schools from all continents are drawn to the museum. 65 countries. This is unique. And I hope that by the end of next year there will be about 100 of them. Before long, our museum will in principle represent all the UN member countries.

Over the years, we have accumulated a unique experience of museum, exhibition, educational and training activities, which allows us to look to the future with confidence and plan projects incredible in scale.

The ancient Chinese wise men used to say that a brush tip focuses the energies of both male and female principles, the good and the evil, yin and yang. This power accomplishes in a hieroglyph, being implemented into something fine and beautiful. If it emerged and revealed itself, it’s unstoppable. This very power can be experienced at the Great Chinese Calligraphy and Painting exhibition in September 2019. The project was presented on the 14th of December, bringing together top-class calligraphers and contemporary artists, and the two great cultures – China and Russia. If nations find common ground in the cultural aspect, they will be able to find the same in other areas of international relations.

Six months of hard work and challenging negotiations are behind now, but this is nothing compared to the amazing people who are joining us on the way to implementing this project. The museum was visited by representative delegations of cultural workers from Beijing and Chinese provinces of Henan and Heilongjiang. Thanks to them, one can immerse in the ancient culture of China, feel the essence of civilization and the depth of cultural traditions. The exhibition is really very specific, and such a large-scale event is held for the first time in Russia and globally. And there is a good reason for that, as next year Russia and China will celebrate the 70th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relationships. 

On a separate note, we have approached to finishing another project of great importance – the Catalogue of Private "National" Museums of Russia. The catalogue will allow to show all breadth of a variety of national Russian culture, which is depersonalized in a modern society. Thanks to small museums from the Russian countryside, the root layer of the national culture with a folklore bias is being revived. People come to the idea of creating a museum, but their inspiration is not purely based on art, but fuelled by a particular inner state that evades any scientific explanation. This is unique! I wish to thank all who march to the same drummer as we do, and spend every effort to preserve the history, culture and traditions of the Great Russia. This is only a first step on a grand and interesting path.

In 2018, the Museum hosted many important events: a Spencerian crash course by an outstanding trainer Michael Sull (personal calligrapher of Ronald Reagan in his post-presidential term); Arabic, Chinese and Slavonic calligraphy workshops. Even football fans who came for the FIFA World Cup took the time to get acquainted with the art of fine writing.

Currently we have outlined promising areas of cooperation to develop calligraphy with MGIMO, MSU and Bauman Moscow State Technical University. Social projects, graduates of the National School of Calligraphy making easy strokes with a pen, talents of young calligraphers – all of it inspires, gives you a second wind and a powerful impulse to move forward, evolve and live!

Many people now know and speak about calligraphy, from a school teacher to a space pilot or a State Duma deputy. I see increasing numbers of young people studying calligraphy, they enjoy writing. Such a boost of interest to the art of fine writing has become possible thanks to the extensive activities of the Museum, a close-knit team of like-minded people and, of course, that of calligraphy experts. Their daily quiet work adds "a drop of joy to this world", as Hermann Zapf said. The Museum has always supported and will continue to support talented people, organizing exhibitions of various levels and providing an opportunity for everyone to share their creative experience. It enriches and indeed serves as a bridge for our professional communication.

Calligraphy can reasonably be called a means of communication. With a few strokes of a brush, one can evoke an emotional image, convey a fleeting feeling and even a special "fragrance" of time, create an associative connection with a subtle hint, which connects the calligraphic text to a whole chain of diverse parallels. That's why calligraphy is also called the "art of word image".

On the New Year's Eve, when wonders happen, we presented a collection of New Year cards and postcards from the pre-revolutionary period and the 20th century. All the exhibits are original copies, which grant the opportunity to take a short trip through time, to plunge into the atmosphere of our history and appreciate the whole range of feelings, experienced by a card author. Reading some of them, especially the ones dating back to the war years, will certainly not leave you tearless...

I would like to note that on May 9, the Day of the Great Victory of the Soviet people over the Nazi invaders, the "Letter of Victory" event was held for the first time, with the involvement of the youth patriotic movement "Volunteers of Victory". We hope that such events will become an annual tradition in the Museum, and the other regions of Russia will adopt it too. Through congratulating the veterans, the volunteers and we show compassion to the people who managed to survive the tragic events of that period.

In these New Year's Eve days I would like to wish everyone a peaceful sky over their heads, joy and prosperity! The challenges we faced this year have united our team, encouraged us to unlock the hidden reserves of our capabilities. Most importantly, we believe in ourselves, in our own strength, and in our project. Let luck accompany the initiatives and projects be successful, keep the inspiration never ending, and let the heart-pleasing wonders stay with you all year round. This is what makes our life brighter, warmer and more pleasant. Happy holidays!

The Director of the Contemporary Museum of Calligraphy and
Manager of International Exhibition of Calligraphy
Alexey Shaburov