HERMITAGE MUSEUM & GARDENS CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) STATEMENT
JUNE 23 UPDATE
HERMITAGE REOPENING FAQs: WHAT TO EXPECT
When will the Hermitage Museum reopen?
The Hermitage Museum will reopen June 23, 2020.
Are there different days/hours of operation?
The museum and gardens are open Tuesday through Sunday from 10 am to 5 pm.
Will I have to wear a mask when visiting the Hermitage Museum?
Yes, face covers have been shown to significantly reduce the likelihood of infection, especially when combined with social distancing. Disposable masks will be available for $1 to museum visitors who arrive without them. To aid with physical distancing and limit surface contact, we encourage using debit and credit cards—instead of cash—when paying for merchandise. All staff and volunteers are also required to wear masks inside the museum. Masks are not required when visiting the gardens.
What precautions is the museum taking to ensure the well-being of visitors, employees, and volunteers?
Visitors to the Hermitage will notice several measures in place to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 with the well-being of visitors, volunteers, and employees in mind.
- We have increased the cleaning and sanitization of the museum’s facilities and campus with special attention to high-contact areas.
- All employees will be required to wear masks and to space six (6) feet apart from guests and staff. All visitors will be required to wear masks too; disposable masks will be available for $1 to visitors who arrive without them.
- Hand-sanitizing stations are available at two locations inside the museum.
- To protect visitors, volunteers, and staff, a clear acrylic partition is installed at our Visitor Services desk.
- A maximum of 50 visitors will be allowed to enter the museum at a time; six (6) feet markers will be spaced outside of the main entrance.
- The Hermitage requests that any visitor, student, or staff member with a fever or symptoms of COVID-19, or known exposure to a COVID-19 case in the prior 14 days, does not enter the museum or Visual Arts School.
How does admittance work?
- Admission to the museum during regular visiting hours will be free through the remainder of 2020. Admission to the special exhibition, Unknown Outcome, during regular visiting hours will also be free through October 2, 2020. Visitors will not be required to purchase a ticket before or upon entering the museum. Special programs will require a ticket that can be purchased online in advance of the event.
- A maximum of 50 visitors will be allowed to enter the museum at a time; six (6) feet markers will be spaced outside of the main entrance.
- Visitors should maintain six (6) feet of physical distance between themselves and others while inside the museum and outside on the Hermitage grounds.
How are physical (social) distancing measures implemented in the museum?
While inside the museum, we request that visitors maintain a physical distance of six (6) feet or more between themselves and others. Signage at the museum entrance and trained staff will help visitors maintain the required distance.
How often is the Hermitage cleaned and sanitized?
The museum, indoor and outdoor restrooms, and high-touch areas are cleaned based on guidelines released by the Governor of Virginia’s executive order for phased reopening processes.
Can group tours be scheduled?
In keeping with physical distancing standards, group tours cannot be scheduled at this time.
How are public classes, camps, and programs affected?
All public programs, classes, and camps at the Hermitage and Visual Arts School have been modified to provide a safe environment. Program ticket sales are limited to forty-five (45) total guests with spaced seating. Summer class and camp sizes have been reduced, student activities have been modified, and additional cleaning and sanitizing procedures have been implemented. Any visitor, student, or staff member with a fever or symptoms of COVID-19, or known exposure to a COVID-19 case in the prior 14 days, will not be permitted inside the museum or Visual Arts School.
We encourage you to continue to follow the precautions outlined by the Centers for Disease Control. You may also visit the Virginia Department of Health for information as it pertains to the Commonwealth of Virginia. In general, heed the advice of health professionals and stay home if you are sick.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us at info@thehermitagemuseum.org.
JUNE 4 UPDATE
Beginning Tuesday, June 9th, the Hermitage gardens will be open Tuesday through Sunday from 10-4pm. The Hermitage Museum remains closed at this time for the installation of our summer exhibition, Unknown Outcome. The museum will reopen on Tuesday, June 23rd with new safety guidelines (forthcoming). Admission to the museum and exhibition will be free through the remainder of 2020.
MAY 11 UPDATE
The Hermitage grounds will reopen on Monday, May 18th. No public parking will be available, limited parking is available in the Lochhaven neighborhood. The museum will remain closed at this time for the installation of our summer exhibition, Unknown Outcome. Gates will be open Monday through Friday from 10 to 4pm. Limited outdoor restrooms will be open and sanitized daily. We ask that all visitors please maintain social distancing guidelines. Groups will be limited to 10 or fewer.
APRIL 23 UPDATE
In response to the state of emergency declared in the Commonwealth of Virginia and growing concerns over the spread of COVID-19, the Hermitage Museum & Gardens has decided to close the museum and gardens to the public and suspend all public programs and tours until further notice. Ceramics Open Studio at the Visual Arts School is also temporarily suspended until further notice. We will continue to monitor the situation and provide regular updates here and on Facebook. For any questions or concerns, please contact us by email or phone at 757-423-2052.
FINDING THE ESSENTIAL: A MESSAGE FROM OUR DIRECTOR, APRIL 23
As I arrive at our hushed and darkened museum each day, I enter with the hope that the reopening of “non-essential” businesses will begin very soon. I’m sure I’m not the only museum director who has struggled with the words “essential” and “non-essential” during this prolonged closure. Why do we find it so hard to think of museums as “non-essential?”
Perhaps Antoine St. Exupéry explains it best when he so eloquently states inThe Little Prince: “That which is essential is invisible to the eye.”
How often do we have time to think about what is truly essential? The crisis gives us time to do just that. St. Exupéry refers to a different “essential” than those we’ve been hearing about in the news. Not the essential of keeping a business open, or of our corporeal requirements. St. Exupéry’s reference is to the essential of the human psyche.
Humans must have emotional connection to others, we need a bond of shared experience, of common purpose. We require those individual moments of encountering something greater than ourselves, giving us a sense of possibility and expanding our horizon. We need those shared opportunities of discovery and awe. That is what museums do for us. It’s why we exist, for that moment when the visitor is awestruck by a performance, a work of art, or experiences the joy of working alongside an artist to create something enduring.
We’re sharing experiences, podcasts, videos and more on our Museum from Home portal until such time as we can get back to the essential business of an in-person experience. That is why our staff remains employed at the Hermitage, continuing to produce virtual experiences that in some way maintain that essential connection and planning for the moment when we can share the awe, the joy, and the excitement together in person. We look forward to seeing all of you then.
Jen Duncan
Executive Director
757-901-4088
A LETTER FROM OUR DIRECTOR, MARCH 31
Just a few days ago we were in an unprecedented situation, with a month-long shutdown of businesses upending all of our lives. We adapted to working from home aided by conference call meetings and sporadic trips into the Hermitage. With yesterday’s announcement that the shutdown will continue until June 10th, we are now in a situation that feels surreal.
I want to assure you that although the museum is closed, the Hermitage remains strong. We are preparing so that when the shutdown is lifted and groups can gather again, we will be ready to welcome everyone back. In the meantime, all of us are staying in touch with everyone involved here at the Hermitage. I hope you’ve had chance to see some of our virtual offerings, both through our eNews as well as our social media.
Although we mourn the loss of the year we thought we were going to have, we are now focused on new goals for this year and next: What opportunities do we see in this situation? How do we emerge stronger than before? Those will be our guiding thoughts during the next months of the shutdown. The Hermitage has become known for it’s unique approaches, and I am confident that creativity will play a large role in our recovery.
The staff and I send you all our best wishes, and look forward to the future with you.
