Employees of the Kyrgyz National Museum of Fine Arts named after Gapar Aitiev ask the President of Kyrgyzstan Sooronbai Jeenbekov to reinstate Mira Dzhangaracheva in office of its director. An open letter was posted on the institution’s official Facebook page.
They note that they are outraged and concerned about the situation in connection with the dismissal of the director related to the scandal around the Feminale.
The exhibition was a planned event, and we did not expect that it would receive a negative response from a certain part of the public.
From the open letter of the museum’s staff
Employees note that Mira Dzhangaracheva, assuming the post of director, set the bar high, and not only in the development of art, but for the entire team, for the reliable preservation of the cultural heritage of the country, attracted qualified personnel and enthusiasts to fulfill the tasks, increased recognition and the popularity of the museum in society, among different segments of the population.
«For several months of her work, in addition to improving the content of events and increase in the number of visitors, archival art collections were put in order, their recording and control were adjusted, the project for digitizing them, closed by the previous director, was renewed, and a cooperation agreement on the project » Art and Children’s Rights «was concluded with UNICEF, as well as with other international organizations; the building and exhibition halls were put in order, the museum’s vaults and cellars were cleared of centuries-old unnecessary junk; new modern requirements were prepared for to the repair and installation of technical equipment; the staff numbers of scientific and unscientific employees have been brought into compliance,» the staff notes.
They add that after the visit of Sooronbai Jeenbekov, the team had hope for a complete overhaul and giving the museum a modern look with reliable life support systems.
«A museum is like a state, there should be its own order and its own responsibility,» the letter says.
Mira Dzhangaracheva honestly and impartially fulfilled her duties and, in our opinion, was in her place, endowing the staff and society with the energy of purity and light.
From a letter of the museum’s staff to the President Sooronbai Jeenbekov
The museum team notes that they recognize the mistakes made during the Feminale and ask the President to objectively review the situation and reinstate Mira Dzhangaracheva in office of the director of the Museum of Fine Arts.
The first Feminale of Contemporary Art is held in Bishkek. The large-scale exposition was opened in the Museum of Fine Arts named after Gapar Aitiev with works of 56 artists from 22 countries.
However, activists were outraged by the performance, which provoked heated discussions on social media about the plight of young women — a girl washing sheep’s intestines in a bowl, or naked women.
The Director of the Kyrgyz National Museum of Fine Arts Mira Dzhangaracheva was hastily dismissed by the Minister of Culture Azamat Zhamankulov.
