Buenos Aires celebrates art, culture with Museum Night

0 Comment(s)Print E-mail Xinhua, November 6, 2017
Adjust font size:

Argentina's capital Buenos Aires displayed its passion for culture with a new edition of Museum Night, drawing an estimated one million visitors to museums and galleries that remained open long past traditional closing hours.

The cultural event saw city museums and other art venues throw open their doors from 8 p.m. on Saturday night through 3 a.m. on Sunday.

Museumgoers got to enjoy national and international art exhibits after hours, including a collection of 53 works by Spanish painter Joan Miro on show at the National Museum of Fine Arts, and on loan from the Reina Sofia Museum in Madrid.

"I think it's great that the exhibits are open to the public (at night) and that they are free, and there is free transportation so that people who live on the outskirts (of the city) can enjoy culture," Mariela Fernandez, a medical student who came to see the Miro drawings, paintings and sculptures, told Xinhua.

The mild spring weather of Buenos Aires helped to make the evening a success, as crowds moved from one museum to another and also attended plays, concerts and other performances.

The Kirchner Cultural Center (CCK), housed in the city's historic post office, was one of the 260 venues that took part in this 14th edition of Museum Night.

The center featured a collection of works from the Fondation Cartier in Paris, including pieces by filmmaker and visual artist David Lynch, visual artist and singer-songwriter Patti Smith, German photographer Wolfgang Tillmans and Japanese photographer Hiroshi Sugimoto among others.

At the CCK, museumgoer Norma Robertson, a retired teacher, said being able to admire artworks at night gave the experience an added dimension.

"Generally, when you come during the day, it is like an obligation, even though you enjoy yourself. But at night, it is like an adventure, it awakens my senses. The nighttime adds something, some mystery," Robertson told Xinhua.

Museums and mass transit lines forgo entrance fees and fares to promote greater participation in the event, with the public free to choose its own itinerary. Even highways leading in and out of Buenos Aires skipped the usual tolls to encourage the cultural outings.

To add to the atmosphere, Line A of the subway system temporarily put back into service its 100-year-old wooden subway cars, so residents could travel in style.

Museum Night, an idea that has taken hold in major cities around the world, reportedly originated in Berlin, Germany in 1977.

Buenos Aires' first edition took place in 2004, with the participation of 29 museums and some 35,000 art lovers.

Follow China.org.cn on Twitter and Facebook to join the conversation.
ChinaNews App Download
Print E-mail Bookmark and Share

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)

No comments.

Add your comments...

  • User Name Required
  • Your Comment
  • Enter the words you see:   
    Racist, abusive and off-topic comments may be removed by the moderator.
Send your storiesGet more from China.org.cnMobileRSSNewsletter