Description of the attraction
Museum-estate of N. K. Roerich in Izvara was opened on June 19, 1984. The history of its creation is closely connected with the return of the eldest son N. K. Roerich, Yu. N. Roerich, a Tibetologist and orientalist, to Russia. He brought pictures of his father, his books, which were published abroad, literary works. The artist's work was enthusiastically received at home.
Interest in the work and life of N. K. Roerich drew the attention of the cultural community to the village of Izvara, where the estate of Roerich's parents was located, where he grew up and began his career. Roerich's admirers had a desire to preserve the memory of the outstanding artist by creating a memorial estate museum in Izvara.
In 1974, in the year of the centenary of the artist's birth, the restoration of the manor house in Izvara began. According to the restoration project carried out under the guidance of the architect A. E. Eck, it was supposed to recreate the manor house, the entire manor and the old park. The restoration work was completed by the beginning of 1978. But the directorate of the Association of Museums of the Leningrad Region abandoned the plan to create a museum due to its remoteness from Leningrad and tourist and excursion routes. The manor house was occupied by the village council, the library, and the art school.
In 1979, the Organizing Council for the organization of the Roerich Museum was created, which was headed by D. S. Likhachev. Only through the efforts and participation of many people in the fate of the museum in Izvara, many artificially created and objective difficulties were overcome. In June 1984, the opening of the exposition entitled “N. K. Roerich in Izvara”in two rooms of the Roerichs' manor house. Thus, in a solemn atmosphere, the museum of N. K. Roerich in Izvara.
In 1988, a program was prepared, as well as the conditions for an open competition for the development of a draft design for the Scientific and Cultural Arts Center in the estate of N. K. Roerich.
After the liberation of most of the premises of the manor house in 1991 by the council, the museum got the opportunity to expand its exposition, exhibition and scientific and educational work. New exhibition, memorial and exhibition halls have been designed in the museum. In addition to the manor house, over time, other manor structures were transferred to the museum. In 1997, an area of 58.8 hectares was assigned to the Roerich Museum. This territory is only a part of the former estate, but despite this it retains the features of the natural landscape of N. K. Izvara's beloved. Roerich. The old manor park, part of the forest, and the system of spring lakes, and the source of the Izvarka river, and the romantic "Alley of Love", and Lake Glukhoe, which combine natural and human creativity, allow you to fully immerse yourself in the atmosphere of an old manor.
In 1990, on the basis of the museum, a cultural and ecological camp "Izvarskie meetings" was organized, where people from 14 to 60 years old from different parts of the country gathered, who worked together in the museum-estate, organized the days of culture of their republics. From these people, the backbone of friends and employees of the museum was formed. In 1993, their efforts began to restore the estate garden.
Work with children has been of particular importance throughout the history of the museum. Children took part in tree planting, archaeological excavations in the estate, and took part in the annual “Light the hearts” festivities in Izvara. Since 2002, school expeditions have been organized here, aimed at studying natural and historical monuments, and children's ecological camps have been held.
The Roerich Estate Museum actively cooperates with the St. environmental research; development of cultural and educational, as well as ecological forms of tourism. The museum collaborates with leading scientists from St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region. The museum hosts exhibitions of paintings by N. K. Roerich from private collections and museums of St. Petersburg. Exhibitions of works by sculptors, painters and photographers are traditional for the estate museum.
In the good tradition of the museum - festivals dedicated to Russian-Indian relations, creative meetings "In the living room of the museum", screenings of new films, "round tables", seminars and conferences, musical and poetry evenings.
In 2006, thanks to the efforts of the museum, the Izvarskoye rural settlement was included in the Baltic XXI International Program, which is aimed at solving the social and demographic problems of rural regions.
