On 26 April 2018, the board of trustees of the Hermitage Foundation (UK) held a meeting in London that discussed current issues and new projects and held a competition for the post of new executive director.
That same evening the annual charitable gala banquet for the benefit of the Hermitage 20/21 project took place in the Raphael Gallery of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Guests of honour this year were the outstanding artists Sir Anish Kapoor and Emilia Kabakova. Guests included Tristram Hunt, Director of the V&A, Gabriele Finaldi, Director of the National Gallery, Desmond Shawe-Taylor, Surveyor of the Queen's Pictures, David, Marquess of Cholmondeley, the Duke and Duchess de Frankopan, Inna Bazhenova, Stella Kesayeva, David Yakobashvili, Mikhail Fridman, Nobel Prize-winner Sir Konstantin Novoselov, and the famous performance artist Taus Makhacheva.
The charity auction for the benefit of Hermitage projects was conducted by the finest professional in his field – Lord Mark Poltimore. Notable contemporary artists such as Anselm Kiefer and Ilya Kabakov donated works for the sale. A distinctive feature of the auction this year was the inclusion of many Russian artists who have already made a name for themselves in their homeland but are still little known abroad.
Professor Mikhail Piotrovsky, General Director of the State Hermitage, opened the evening by saying that the mission of art – to unite and bring cultures together, to further mutual understanding and strengthen ties between people and nations – is more relevant than ever at the present moment.