by Nina Vaclavikova
Interview: Francesco Fait, Head of the Art Museums Department (Responsabile di Posizione Organizzativa dei Musei Artistici); Francesca Avignone — Curator of the Civic Art Museums (Conservatrice dei Musei Artistici)
Trieste’s Museum of Oriental Art is marking its 25th anniversary with renovated exhibition spaces, upgraded conservation systems and a new immersive installation introducing visitors to its Chinese and Japanese collections.
The museum, housed in Palazzetto Leo, recently reopened following improvements to its lighting and climate-control systems. The work, supported by a €225,000 grant from the Friuli Venezia Giulia regional government, is designed to better preserve delicate artworks while improving the visitor experience.
A new audiovisual installation at the entrance uses images of Japanese prints, textiles and porcelain to introduce visitors to the museum’s collections. Exhibition labels will also be progressively translated into English.
The museum’s holdings reflect Trieste’s historic trading connections with East Asia, including porcelain, paintings, prints, weapons and textiles collected during the 19th and 20th centuries.
Anniversary celebrations will continue through January with free lectures, workshops and performances exploring Japanese and Chinese art and culture. The program includes events on manga, traditional Chinese ceramics, samurai culture, calligraphy and Japanese poetry.
The celebrations begin Nov. 19 with a four-day program dedicated to the visual history of Japan and manga.
