The annual Hermitage's Gala Banquet is cancelled

Dear Friends,

Sadly, we have to advise you that the annual Gala Banquet in the Winter Palace cannot take place this year. We hope that you will receive this news with the same sorrow with which we and the Hermitage’s Director feel on making this decision. We will all look forward to June 2021, when the next Gala will be held with even greater splendour than ever!

Every year the State Hermitage Museum hosts the Gala Banquet and Ball in the Winter Palace. This magnificent celebration attracts patrons of the arts and friends of the Hermitage, famous artists and actors, politicians and major businessmen - all those who share core values of the museum and world culture.

The Gala raises donations for the State Hermitage Endowment Fund. The income from this specially designated fund is used to expand the museum’s collection. With its help, for example, the Hermitage has acquired Anselm Kiefer's “Aurora”, arranged the return of the ombre tables from the Yusupov Palace to Russia from abroad, and last year bought a valuable collection of Italian medieval and Renaissance art.

Having lost all visitors, museums are among the most affected by the pandemic. In this difficult moment for the Hermitage we hope for your support and solidarity. Donations are accepted online here. The names of all donors will be published on our website.

We invite you to look at our Youtube channel and recall the Hermitage Gala Banquets of the past years.