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The Marble Palace area 10 542, 4 sq.m.
Building volume 95 137 cube m.
The Marble Palace was designed by the architect Antonio Rinaldi and built in 1785. This magnificent building was specially made by Catherine the Great as a present for Count Grigory Orlov. From 1796 onwards the Marble Palace was a residence of the Grand Dukes. Its owners - Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich, Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich and his descendants - constantly had the palace interiors changed. The most thorough reconstruction work, connected with the name of Alexander Brullov, lasted from 1848 to 1851.
He chose to preserve the external face of the palace facades, whilst redecorating the interiors of the state halls, the church and the private apartments. Rinaldi's original interiors - the Main Staircase, Vestibule and the Marble Room - were however preserved. In the center of the Main Staircase ceiling is located "Paris' Judgement" plafond by the German painter of the 18th century J. Krist. In the Marble Hall decoration were used seven marble sorts of Greek, Italian, Ural, Karel and Siberian rocks. The hall was decorated with basreliefs by sculptors F. Shubin and M. Kozlovsky and plafond "Venus' Triumph" by S. Torelli.
In 1888 the Marble Palace was inherited by the Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich, a famous Silver Age poet who wrote under the pseudonym of K.R. During his time there the Marble Palace became the centre of cultural life in the capital.
В 1937 г. в залах Мраморного дворца были развернуты экспозиции Ленинградского филиала Центрального музея В.И. Лен In 1937 a branch of the Central Lenin Museum was opened in the halls of the Marble Palace. This new use for the palace quarters led to the loss of the decor in the halls on the first floor. The palace's unique fireplaces and decorative fabrics were destroyed. The bays on the Main Staircase, once adorned by the marble statues of Fedot Shubin (now in the Russian Museum), stood deserted. In the halls the artificial marble and the gilt moulding on the archs were painted over, the murals whited over and the parquette floors relaid.
In January 1992 the Marble Palace was handed over to the State Russian Museum.
Conception of the Marble Palace museification
"Russian art in the context of world art culture"
In the State Russian Museum complex the Marble Palace exposition will present Russian art in its intercommunication and interaction with world art culture. The main idea is to show since earliest times organic connection between cultures of Europe and Russia and to present role of Russia in the world civilization development, originality of its art heritage that took in achievements of European culture and gave it its inimitable artistic experience.
The main section of the museum permanent exposition located in the first floor halls consists of two parts.
The first part that is called "Rossika. Foreign artists in Russia of the 18th - 19th centuries" is placed in expositional halls of the southern wing (the Dining Hall, Reception Hall, Entrance Hall, Drawing Hall, Refreshment Room). There are shown more than 400 works by European artists which life was anyway connected with Russia and whose work was integral part of Russian artistic life - Georg Groot, I. B. Lampi, Paolo Rotari, Stefano Torelli, S. Tonci, H. Vige-Lebren, John Dpw. They took a detached view on Russia but it was this special vigility of a traveler and they were very attentive to sometimes-unnoticed details and mode of life peculiarity that gives this exposition special not only artistic but also historical and ethnographical interest.
The second part is devoted to art of the 20th century and is called "Museum Ludwig in the Russian Museum". It is located in the northern wing exposition halls, the former chambers of the Grand Duchess Alexandra Iosifovna and the Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich (former Drawing Hall, Small Dining Room, Bedchamber, Boudoir etc.). "Museum Ludwig in the Russian Museum" exposition consists of Russian nonconformist artists' works of Soviet Period that are presented in modern and avant-garde trends in world art context.
The Ludwig Museum is a unique gift of worldwide famous German collectors Peter and Irena Ludiwg. Their somewhat detached but not indifferent look "on Russia from Europe" is signed with understanding and recognition of high value of Russian contribution to world culture. They are also distinguished by irreproachable taste in purchased works' selection that allowed creating one of the best collections of modern art, including Russian art as well.
Kasimir Malevich's words that he said in the century beginning concerning necessity of intent studying of intercommunication and interinfluences of Russian and world art. This idea has something in common despite the decades have passed with the exposition idea of the 21st century where will be presented true view on Russian participation in forming new and contemporary European and world cultures.
Side by side with exhibition work on directions that have already shown themselves to advantage we plan to create exhibition work of somewhat different direction. After achieving stable audience of contemporary art the Russian Museum would strive to enlarge it by working with youth. With that end in view we will work out the type of didactic exhibitions. Thus having potential of actual art exhibition this will be training and interactive exposition.
On this type exhibitions base will be tested new technologies of working with a visitor: constantly working seminar called "Contemporary trends" and courses of studying at a distance.
"The Marble Palace and its owners" department will be placed in K. K. Romanov's private apartments in the five rooms of the ground floor where have been already opened the memorial museum of the grand Duke K. K. Romanov who signed his poems with initials "K. R.".
In the White (Gothic) Hall and in the Winter Garden will be created concert and entertainment complex. The White Hall transforming space allows holding conferences, seminars, and films' review. It also could be an exhibition and theatrical hall, there could be arranged artistic performances and receptions. This complex of the White Hall, Oak Gallery, Greek Gallery and the Winter Garden should be the source of attracting funds.
Part of the ground floor service rooms will be allotted for Internet classes of free access that will render information service of visitors with an allowance for advanced achievements of world museum practice. There is also a shop of the museum publishing and souvenir production. There will be opened permanent and season cafes. After reconstructing the fences and entrance gates on the Neva River Embankment line the Marble Palace will be the part of water excursion route called "The Russian Museum Palaces".
Contemporary art center
For the last five years the Marble Palace with its standing project named "Museum Ludwig in the Russian Museum" that periodically included (about 10 times a year) exhibitions of contemporary art masters, both home and foreign have been the contemporary art center and the unique museum center in Russia that purposefully presented artistic culture on museum level. The center's exhibition program will be developed in already specified direction - there will be organized exhibitions of the most significant Russian and Western masters that will give a visitor understanding of transnational context of contemporary art. New accent of scientific and didactic character is to enlarge auditorium of contemporary art. This educational orientation corresponds to the last trends of contemporary art museums' practice and it is particularly important in Russian specifics. New conceptual direction of the Center activity will be educational program.
Nowadays it is evident that contemporary art auditorium should be expanded and there should be prepared specialists who will be aware of contemporary material and who will be able to give professional and student auditoriums corresponding information and methods of working with it. On the Contemporary art department base with its unique specialists on contemporary art with the use of appropriate computer and information equipment (including already working information net projects that are used by various Western funds and institutes) will be worked out diverse educational programs in contemporary art field - systems of distance, interactive and direct i.e. working with expositional material. Necessity of creating this kind of center is dictated by both cultural interests of modern society (its reflection are numerous projects of creating contemporary art museums) and unique possibilities that have already existed in the museum: experience in realization of the Marble palace museification conception, availability of universal specialists on contemporary art, unique exposition (the Ludwig Museum) and technological (the Internet class) bases.
For the period from 1991 to 1998:
There were restored 34 halls with the total area 1730 sq. m. costing - $ 6 620 000
To 2003:
Restoration of parade halls and dolomite vases mounting on the palace parapet (86 pieces), two cast-iron fences restoration as well as restoration of the garden and supply with gas of middle pressure.
Cost of the works - $ 5 150 000
To 2008:
Facades' restoration, hydroisolation of the ground floor, restoration of the cast-iron fence from the side of Millionnaya street and the Palace Embankment. Completing restoration works on the first floor parade halls and Konstantin Romanov's chambers.
Total cost of the works - $ 9 000 000
Total cost of the works to 2008 - $ 14 150 000
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