Joint education program by Skolkovo Gymnasium and Garage Museum of Contemporary Art: Introduction to Contemporary Art and Design

Beginning October 2020, the Gymnasium’s students will have the opportunity to choose new courses on contemporary art, graphic and media design, architecture, and ceramics, and get access to studio spaces fully equipped for productive work.

The joint program with Skolkovo Gymnasium is part of Garage’s extensive education and research agenda aimed at supporting like-minded cultural and educational institutions. The Museum’s experience in the development and implementation of education programs in the field of contemporary culture and inclusion for diverse audiences allows for the selection of an interaction format that best meets the objectives of each such project and fosters further development. It can take the form of an exhibit (for example, the Open Systems show dedicated to the exploration of artistic self-organization and implemented in several Russian cities)—or a complex education program, like the one carried out for the Astana Contemporary Art Center pavilion which acquainted visitors to the ASTANA EXPO-2017 international fair with contemporary art.  

Bringing together the Museum’s expertise with the Gymnasium’s cutting edge education practices has enabled the design of a flexible program of extracurricular courses for grades 1 to 9, which gradually integrates students in the field of arts and culture. The elementary school block emphasizes the variety of materials and techniques implemented by contemporary artists and architects. Courses on contemporary art and architecture for secondary schoolchildren will acquaint them with art’s key directions and movements, as well as options for professional growth that these areas provide. The graphic and media design course will allow students to «go the way» of a designer and discover their own pathway by learning some basic programs and methods progressively.

Another program developed especially for the Gymnasium is the series of short courses Skolkovovedenie (Skolkovo Studies), which builds connections between the culture and history of the areas surrounding the Innovation Centre—and pupils’ personal experience. A local history course for elementary students will help to bring together the already acquired information on the history and environment, as well as train the main methods of academic research, such as observation, experimentation, data collection (in the form of interviews with parents), and critical analysis of sources. Secondary students will present projects of futuropolises, propose a concept of a public program for Peredelkino, shoot an animation film-homage to Kazimir Malevich, and learn the working principles of the contemporary architect David Adjaye.

Collaboration with Garage is one of the multiple facets of the Gymnasium’s Art and Design project, aimed at the formation and subsequent development of a direction in contemporary art, architecture, and design within its main education program.

An important part of the program Art and Design is the creation of a comfortable environment for pupils to work on independent projects. The Gymnasium’s educators, together with Garage’s experts, have revised the conceptions of and bought new equipment for the art and design studios, the media studio, and the ceramics studio. The renovation will also include the Skolkovo library.  FORM architectural bureau, with the support of Garage, will engage in the conversion of its premises. The new project design implies the creation of cozy and comfortable units for individual work with improved acoustic protection.

The Skolkovo International Gymnasium, located on the territory of the Skolkovo Innovation Centre, is a private educational institution for Russian and International students from kindergarten to 11th grade.

The Mission of the school is to guide and develop critically thinking, creative and knowledgeable young minds, ready and able to change our world for the better. Integration with the many startups and partner organizations at the Skolkovo Innovation Centre supports research and exploration as primary methods of education.

The school currently has 190 teachers on staff and a student body of 692 pupils ranging from 2-17 years of age. Graduates receive a Russian diploma as well as the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma, giving them the opportunity to continue their education at some of the world’s leading universities.