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A museum that cannot be ignored. A museum with very popular exhibitions. A participant in the Night of Museums and the Autumn Festival of Museums. A museum where the tasks include searching for sponsors, attracting the public and maintaining visitor interest, as well as dealing with tenders and renovations – small and large projects, as they call them. A museum which is significant, though not among the largest regarding size. It’s in a listed building where reconstruction is underway. A castle whose walls are being made transparent, not only in a symbolic sense. It’s a cultural institution in Transylvania which over a few years has become instrumental in forming opinion, where issues are raised somewhat differently from Hungary. In Miercurea Ciuc MúzeumCafé talked to the director of the Sekler Museum of Ciuc, Zsolt Gyarmati, winner of the MúzeumCafé Award 2011.

Reconstruction is underway in Mikó Castle, which houses the Sekler Museum of Ciuc. In January 2011 Romania’s Minister of Culture and Heritage Protection, Hunor Kelemen, announced that the ministry had allocated 1.5 million euros for the renovation of the late Renaissance castle built in the 17th century. What does this mean for the museum?

We made the plans five years ago and have waited for a favourable political situation to be included in a national conservation project relating to listed buildings. Reconstruction doesn’t involve the museum but the building. The sum provided by the government is being supplemented by the local authority, thus we are trying to reserve some finances during the two years of the investment and achieve as much as we can for the museum. Reconstruction is going ahead as scheduled: the roof has been newly tiled, a new heating system has been installed, the windows and doors have been replaced, the electricity and the water systems have been modernised. However, it is unsure whether the budget will stretch to replacement of lighting and air-conditioning.

During pre-reconstruction explorations even experts were surprised to find concealed crenelles, door and window openings, frescos and a well. Visitors can soon learn about the castle’s past and new services will include a café and space for business functions. When will the castle and the museum reopen?

The reconstruction will not have finished when the permanent exhibition opens, I hope, in May 2012, while the café could open in the summer. A unique feature of the exhibition, with its multimedia system is that it presents the archaeological finds such that they can be viewed from above while walking on metal grating. In addition, two short films shot with actors from Sekler Land will help visitors appreciate everyday life in the 17th and 18th centuries and understand how valuable objects got to the bottom of a well.

The café will break through not only the ‘wall’ of museum opening hours but also that of the castle and will have a public access?

Yes, when the museum closes the café can be accessed from the other side of the castle wall. We’ll open up two windows which used to be a door, thus the café will not only have a second entrance but a garden open in the evening.

Your success is not only exemplary for museums in Transylvania, it has also attracted attention in Hungary. The second MúzeumCafé Award went to Miercurea Ciuc but you were written about in the first issue of the journal – in 2007 attention focussed on your Munkácsy exhibition, which attracted 62,000 visitors. But where did the museum start from?

In the 1990s the Sekler Museum of Ciuc did not exploit an economically favourable period like other Transylvanian museums, whether Hungarian or Romanian. Let’s not be inquisitive about why not! When I took on heading the museum in August 2003 work had to be started from scratch. Of course, it had performed all the functions of a museum – objects were collected, the staff published their findings and exhibitions were held. My main problem was that the doors had not been open wide enough. Our mission is to address every social stratum and promote the ‘habit’ of going to museums.

What are the most important aspects of reaching out?

A very important thing is for a museum, more precisely for Mikó Castle, to present culture in a broad sense of the word. The conditions here are fortunate, the museum is in one of the area’s oldest secular protected buildings. We can accommodate various cultural events and high-standard entertainment, and we can attract people who otherwise would not go to a museum. Yet not only a suitable space or a successful exhibition are required for an institution to operate well. A dynamic, creative team and good management are also essential. The management must have a vision regarding where the institution is at any moment and where it would like to get to via which stations. In addition, we wouldn’t have become successful without professional contacts or without a culture-friendly funding local authority. Furthermore, sponsors are vital. We managed to get them on our side.

What sponsors did you find?

In whatever location, minority existence has more drawbacks than advantages. We are trying to build on the advantages. We have found big Hungarian multinational companies operating in Romania which deem it necessary to sponsor high-quality events with a Hungarian connection. OTP Bank Romania and MOL Romania have been supporting us with major sums for years.

What amounts are involved? What is the museum’s budget?

The local authority support of about 300,000 euros is sufficient for the museum to exist. The Miercurea Ciuc local government is investment-friendly as regards culture, therefore every year we manage to call on significant extra resources for concrete goals. Our own income derives from ticket sales, sponsors and successful tender bids. However, the latter involves only a few ten thousand euros and sponsors like supporting well-defined events.

How is all this reflected in your exhibition policy?

The museum year can be divided into two seasons. Tourism is important from May to September, while in the rest of the year we try to offer events for the local population. For them temporary exhibitions matter. From this aspect 2007 was a milestone for the museum when we alone in Transylvania held the Munkácsy exhibition which toured Hungary. That was when colleagues from Transylvania and the home country took note of our museum. Continuation was expected, from the public and the profession. So we contacted the largest museums in Hungary, the National Gallery, the Museum of Fine Arts and most recently the Natural History Museum, for the loan of high-quality objects of interest for people here. We endeavour to reflect the values of universal and Hungarian cultural history. Thanks to these ‘large projects’, the number of visitors in a town of 40,000 amounts to 50-70,000. Following the Munkácsy exhibition, in 2008 a collection of the Nagybánya artists’ colony was presented. The Mongol Invasion in 2009 drew 36,000 visitors. The following year the Fine Arts Museum’s Egypt exhibition and the National Gallery’s 19th-century Romantic paintings were also popular. In 2011 the exhibition Mysteries, Lives, Mummies was presented in Sekler Land with the help of the Hungarian Natural History Museum. The number of visitors to our highlighted events has always exceeded 18,000.

Are you criticised for the museum not primarily relying on local material?

With the exception of The Mongol Invasion they weren’t ‘ready-made’ exhibitions. The material was selected in line with our requests and according to our viewpoints. The truth is that it is far more difficult to organise an exhibition from local collections. Besides, it can only be a ‘small project’ since a sponsor would not see potential in that. Our large projects bear a marketing cost of 30-50,000 euros. They are worth supporting because the sponsor can be highlighted and its social responsibility is widely promoted. We don’t want to put on mediocre displays and it’s true that we cannot organise really good temporary exhibitions from our own collection.

Why is that?

I admit this is a weak point of ours. Journalists often ask why we are the best museum in Transylvania. I usually answer that it’s not true. Every museum has its own positive qualities, each is good at something. However, while in Hungary museologists could think in terms of modern exhibitions already in 1989, here exhibitions had to be held about Ceauşescu and the 5-year plan. The Transylvanian Hungarian world of science began to gradually revive only in the 1990s. Professional contacts with Hungary were badly needed, a new research team had to emerge so that we could achieve in 20 years what we have now. In order for socialism to be researched in Transylvania, researchers had to be trained and the archives had to be opened – incidentally, they are still administered by the Interior Ministry.

You aim to present the traditions of ice-hockey after the exhibition on the castle’s history.

Miercurea Ciuc is home to ice hockey, therefore we are definitely planning an exhibition about it in the refurbished building. But we are not there yet as reconstruction is still underway. When the final space and the up-to-date infrastructure take shape, then we can think seriously. It’s worth turning to a theme for which only we have a collection, experts and the research.

Yet you have successful exhibitions and you have sent material to Hungary.

The retrospective of works by one of the most famous Sekler artists, Imre Zsögödi Nagy, toured Hungary for three years. The mayor of Miercurea Ciuc was almost always present at the opening, thus we managed to promote the town.

What about research?

Archaeology is a dynamically developing branch. Our four archaeologists are researching Sekler medieval sacral and secular architecture. We have the majority of the Ciuc Franciscan order’s Şumuleu Ciuc stock of books. We hold 124 incunabula and in this respect our museum is the third in Romania. Our colleague handling the collection is a cultural historian noted in Europe and we have an exhibition and a catalogue of this material. Moreover, our paper-restoring workshop has developed in conjunction with these. Our art historian and ethnographer, as well as our painting, metal and ceramics restorers, perform a similarly high-quality job.

What opportunities does the museum have for increasing its collection?

Donations are always made and we are lucky to have the resources to purchase items from time to time. Two years ago the town bought two paintings for the museum from an auctioneer for 20,000 euros. Thanks to 16 paintings being purchased for the museum by the funding body, we now have the largest István Nagy collection in Transylvania.

What about the ethnographic and historical collection? Is there an opportunity for you to document both the distant and the recent past?

Our ethnographic collection is rather significant and is continuously expanding. My old wish is for the museum to acquire a bread voucher. Since everyone needed bread, today these vouchers are difficult to find.

As mentioned, you are looking for reaching out points. Where else can you ‘break though’ the castle wall?

Museum education and public relations provide such examples. We have organised special summer schools for two years. Registration is overwhelming, our waiting list includes 100 children. Our colleague, who was trained in Szent-endre, not only works with children in the museum but visits schools, arouses interest and informs the teachers.

And adults?

We hold small temporary exhibitions and book launches, and we are pleased to accommodate concerts and other entertainment events. We live in a small town where a Friends of the Museum has been formed. We can always rely on 50-60 people. We are organising the Night of Museums for the third year running. In the past more than 2000 participants have been able take part in events throughout the day. And we always have the Autumn Festival of the Museum. We want to continue to participate in cultural festivals in both Romania and Hungary (the May Day Festival of Museums in Budapest, the Hungarian Days in Cluj-Napoca). At the same time, we bring the films of several international film festivals to the people in Miercurea Ciuc such as those of Très Courts – Very Short International Film Festival, initiated by the French, One World Romania, founded for the protection of human rights, as well as Animest – Animation International Film Festival. There is always something happening here, so it is worth regularly checking our website.

That is also an element of the museum’s excellent communication, which not only targets Transylvania.

That’s why I indicated that our image is better than we actually are. Hence, we have to live up to such expectations.