The Museum Congress concluded at the International Symposium "Inventing the Future"

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On November 6, the Museum Congress "Museum: A Place for Shaping the Future" wrapped up at the International Symposium "Inventing the Future" held at the National Centre RUSSIA. For three days, Russian and international experts discussed whether museums will be needed in the future, what they should look like, and the role museum spaces may play in shaping tomorrow's reality.

"On the first day, we spoke about national and multinational themes; on the second, about how the museum is a place for applying new technologies; and on the third, we discussed to what extent it can be a place of future shaping. There were very different viewpoints on all three topics. And because truth is often born of debate, I believe this is a solid foundation for us to start formulating and implementing something. We are delighted to have this informative platform, and it’s wonderful that it exists outside the bounds of traditional museum communication," noted the Congress moderator, art historian, and Director of the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts, Yelizaveta Likhacheva.

Ahead of the discussions, a special expert survey was conducted among 50 museum professionals, identifying four potential directions for museums of the future. The final day of the Congress was dedicated to museums as spaces for communication: based on survey results, four primary forecasts were developed. According to the first forecast, people of the future will stop visiting museums; the second states that education will become one of the museum’s primary functions; the third suggests that artificial intelligence will replace several "museum professions"; and the fourth, which received the majority of votes, predicts that "museum professions" will become interdisciplinary, with museum professionals gaining multi-competency skills.

Scientific Secretary of the National Museum of the Republic of Kazakhstan Sayalbek Gizzatov explained why he believes museums will retain their relevance in the future.

"Why will people keep visiting museums? The fact is, humans still understand the world and perceive it through their own experiences, feelings, and sensations. Therefore, even in an era of technological advancements, the museum will remain an essential platform for communicating and understanding both the world and oneself," Sayalbek Gizzatov is certain.

Director of the State Museum of Oriental Art, Alexander Sedov, emphasized that museum professionals of the future will need to develop competencies and gain authority in different specializations to engage in full and effective interdisciplinary dialogues with people.

"Today, knowledgeable individuals are becoming, let's say, an increasingly rare breed. Therefore, museum workers must possess a considerable amount of knowledge, experience, and interdisciplinary skills to be able to answer almost any question," Alexander Sedov stated.

Xue Jiang, Head of Cultural Development at the Chengdu Science Fiction Museum (China), spoke about the extent to which that museum is Chinese and international.

"We strive to enrich our visitors’ experiences as much as possible. People usually think science fiction culture only involves reading relevant books, but we want to offer them diverse experiences and show that sci-fi is cool. Our writers meet with fans, we host sci-fi film screenings, sci-fi carnivals, and performances. Our museum is set in a park by a lake, where visitors can even kayak, which is important because young visitors, their parents, and even grandparents can find something to do. And of course, we hope our museum will become a platform for cultural exchange," Xue Jiang remarked.

Summing up, Yelizaveta Likhacheva pointed out that while indirectly, museums will indeed play a crucial role in shaping the future.

"In different times, culture has often been a source of salvation for people, and this is remembered and valued not only by Russia but by all of humanity. Therefore, museums that study the past may also become places where the future takes shape. I believe that, to a large extent, thanks to museums, many historical mistakes have been and continue to be avoided — and for this reason alone, the existence of museums is absolutely justified," concluded the expert.

The International Symposium "Inventing the Future" is being held from November 4 to 6. Participants include scientists, researchers, futurists, science fiction writers, and representatives from government bodies from 101 countries, including Russia, India, Italy, Iran, China, the UAE, Serbia, the USA, and France. The program features over 60 sessions across four tracks: "Future of Human," "Future of Technology," "Future of Multipolar World," and "Future of Civilizations." The program and event broadcasts are available at the website future.russia.ru.

The International Symposium "Inventing the Future" is the first event of the National Centre RUSSIA, which was established on July 1, 2024, by the order of President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin. The Centre aims to preserve the legacy of the International RUSSIA EXPO and showcase the achievements of the country and its citizens. The work of the Centre involves federal authorities, state companies, corporations, and regions.