The Word Slavic Writing Museum Center at VDNKh

Goal

To create a project of multimedia system, deliver the equipment and carry out programming and commissioning in the new Moscow museum, dedicated to the past, present and future of Cyrillic writing.

The Word Slavic Writing Museum Center opened its doors on May 24, 2019, a memorable day in Russia, dedicated to Slavic culture and writing. The center is located in the renovated pavilion No. 58 VDNKh. Originally a pavilion of the Ukrainian Soviet Republic, it is considered to be one of the most beautiful and largest buildings of the whole VDNKh exhibition complex. The total area of the halls of the pavilion — 1600 m2, while its height with a spire — 42 m.

In this project we were fully responsible for the technical set-up of the space: from the design and preparation of the necessary technical documentation to the supply of equipment and its commissioning. In total all works took over a year.

The project of the multimedia complex has changed several times due to changes in the concept of the museum and its educational complex that is unique for Russia. After the pavilion was commissioned by the restorers, we began our work with contractors for laying cable runs. In addition, we carried out automation, installation supervision and commissioning of equipment, including key technical solutions for complex interactive and multimedia installations.

At each stage of the project, we worked closely with the curators of the project — Mikhail Pokrass and Ekaterina Mochalina, as well as with the architect and the light designer. According to the concept, the exhibition space is divided into several thematic areas and includes a lecture hall/theater space. Visitors will be able to get acquainted with the history of writing and language development and take part in master classes and educational programs. Special attention should be paid to the large-scale interactive projection installation 'Alphabet', showing the changes in the shape of the letters from the first extant samples to the present day, for which a separate control panel wаs assembled as a part of the bespoke engineering solution. 

In total the museum is equipped with more than 40 LCD monitors and touch screens, 12 projectors, directional and multi-channel sound systems. Due to the wide deployment of multimedia solutions, the Center has become one of the most technically advanced exhibition venues in Moscow. 

We also took over the programming of interactive installations with touch screens, which allow visitors to get acquainted with many written sources that have played a role in the rich history and culture of the country.


The technical and multimedia solutions we have integrated into this project have also received international recognition of professionals — for them our team has become a finalist in the prestigious Heritage in Motion 2019 award of the European Museum Association. Visitors also appreciated this project. Incredibly, in just 4 months of operation, the Center was visited by more than 97,000 people — or an average of about 100 people per hour, including weekdays and holidays.