International Museum Day

Today is marked as the International Museum Day, an iniciative seeking to raise awareness of the fact that museums play an important rol in society. Quoting Prof. Dr. Hans-Martin Hinz, President of the ICOM, "museums are an importante means of cultural exchange, enrichment of cultres and development of mutual understanding, cooperation and peace among peoples". Since it was established in 1977, International Museum Day is held around May 18th every year and each edition celebrates a different theme, this year's being "Museums for a sustainable society". Four museums in Salamanca have joined the initiative with free admission and special activities today:

Museo Casa Lis

Visit the 19 collections of this peculiar museum, focusing on art nouveau and art déco, with free admission today between 11 am and 2 pm.

Museo Da2
This contemporary art centre located in the old jail offers guided tours free of charge today at 1 pm, 6 pm and 7 pm. Besides the exhibitions currently on display, visitors will be shown areas which are not usually open to the public, such as the restoration space and the warehouses. You need to arrange your visit by calling 923 18 49 16. Groups of maximum 20 people.

Museo de Historia de la Automoción
Free admission today at this museum displaying more than 90 vehicles from different periods. If you are lucky enough to be visiting the museum at midday or at 6 pm, you are welcome to join a free guided tour. Furthermore, following this year's theme, "Museums for a sustanaible society", visitors will be introduced to a device invented in the nineteenth century, the gasogen, that has since been improved and is being applied to projects related to energetic efficiency and sustainability, such as some that have to do with biomass fuel and electricty generation.

Museo de Salamanca
Museo de Salamanca exhibits paintings, archaeological remains, craftwork and goldsmithing, among others, also adheres to International Museum Day by holding special activities from Tuesday, May 19th to Sunday, May 24th:

Tuesday, May 19th | 5 pm: themed visit: "Mujeres protagonistas" (Leading women).
Wednesday, May 20th | 5 pm: themed visit: "Paisajes en el museo" (Landscapes in the museum) | 6 pm: piano concert.
Thursday, May 21st | 5 pm: themed visit: "Mujeres protagonistas" (Leading women) | 6 pm: voice and piano concert.
Friday, May 22nd | 5 pm: themed visit: "Paisajes en el museo" (Landscapes in the museum) | 6 pm: guitar concert | 7 pm: temporary exhibition "La liberación de los cautivos" (The liberation of the captive).
Saturday, May 23rd | 11:30 am: workshop "Arqueólogos e historiadores por un día" (Archaeologists and historians for one day) | 1 pm: piece of the month, El códice de los trajes, del siglo XVI (The codex of garments, 16th century) | 1:30 pm: piece of the month, El códice de los trajes, del siglo XVI (The codex of garments, 16th century) | 5 pm:
themed visit: "Mujeres protagonistas" (Leading women) | 6 pm: violin concert.
Sunday, May 24th | 1 pm: chamber music concert.

Don't miss this chance to get to know Salamanca a bit better. Our alumni Claire didn't and she told us in this article.

Credits:
Poster distributed by ICOM.
Collage, left to right:
"Cafetería de la Casa Lis (Salamanca)" by Siri twin under GFDL via Wikimedia Commons.
"PEGASOZ102SAOUTCHICK" by Arbeyu under CC BY-SA 2.5 via Wikimedia Commons.
"El Día de la Hecatombe - I" by r2hox under CC BY-SA 2.0 via Flickr.

International Museums Day : what better way to discover Salamanca's treasures?

Saturday, May 20 was International Museums Day , we, students at Tia Tula, made use of this opportunity to visit for free the new art museum of Salamanca, also known as Casa Lis and the Automobile Museum (Museo de la automoción).

The Casa Lis museum overlooks the river Tormes, it features beautiful stained glass windows decorated with floral pattern and has a large variety of art pieces: sculptures, jewelry, perfumes, fans, antique dolls ... It is a must for anyone visiting Salamanca.

The automobile museum meanwhile offers a large collection of cars, sweeping the centuries since the invention of the automobile until today. This museum is particularly interesting for car enthusiasts but it is also an opportunity for others to take beautiful photos.

After these two museums, we also visited (or revisited for some of us) the patio of the Casa de las Conchas and the old cathedrals which entrance is always free. We then headed to the Van Dyck neighbourhood to eat Tapas and ended our meal with an ice-cream from the glacier in the Plaza Mayor, the historic center of the city.

This very fun day has been an opportunity to learn more about the Spanish culture and the main tourist attractions of Salamanca.

Claire, student intern at Tia Tula