1. ConservArte

The ConservArte Citi-CSMVS Art Conservation Project is a sustained corporate-museum partnership, the first of this scale in India where over the past 7 years, 7,798 historic art objects – paintings, sculpture, textiles, manuscripts and decorative art objects have been conserved. The project has showcased these objects through 10 exhibitions reaching out to 6,60,000 visitors, and has forged 23 collaborations, organized 55 technical lectures and workshops, hosted 24 fellowships, and built capacities of 1500 students and professionals. The state-of-the-art storages being designed for the Museum will care for its 70,000 collections of historic and artistic works of various types and technologies, spanning the prehistoric period to the present time. The Art Conservation Centre is also being refurbished to position itself at the forefront of the Indian cultural heritage conservation movement.

2. Museum on Wheels

The Citi-CSMVS Museum on Wheels Outreach Initiative has two state-of-the-art buses, custom-designed to carry travelling exhibitions on themes drawing from the CSMVS’ rich collections. The initiative is designed to reach schools, colleges, NGOs and the general public within the city of Mumbai and across the states of Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka and Goa with an aim to create awareness about heritage and culture. It establishes a connection between the past and present through hands-on experiences. Over the last 6 years, since its launch, the initiative has reached out to 12,17,712 people physically and 60,000 people online. It has organized 7 travelling exhibitions, initiated collaborations with over 340 educational institutions and travelled over 40,000 km. The initiative works on the philosophy of ‘If you cannot come to the museum, the museum will come to you’.

3. Children’s Museum

The Children’s Museum is a ‘creative cultural lab’ that encourages discovery, innovation and creativity. The dream of having a space for children and by children came in the form of first children’s museum in Mumbai with the generous financial support from the Bank of America. The museum provides holistic learning experiences that are relevant to children – their learning needs, enjoyment expectations and life aspirations through vibrant exhibits, programmes, workshops and activities. Through this open and free space, we strive to nurture a creative, exploratory and balanced environment for children while providing the joys of childhood.

4. Vriksha Valli

Vriksha Valli is a unique initiative which was jointly conceptualised by the CSMVS, the HT Parekh Foundation and implemented by CERE (Centre for Environmental Research and Education). Here, visitors can experience the different hues of the word “Garden” as they walk through this curated space and engage with various aspects of the natural world.
The garden has five sections – Historical Garden, Butterfly Garden, Medicinal Garden, and Kitchen Garden. The fifth space, the Vertical Garden doubles up as a Selfie-spot for visitors who can enjoy this lush backdrop.

5. The Mumbai Gallery

The Mumbai Gallery will be the first of its kind in Mumbai that will offer visitors to and from the city a never-before-seen experience through a curated display illustrating the various stages of development of the port city. The narrative of the gallery will focus on the collaborations and contributions of the people of the city which make it a place ‘by the people and for the people. The need for this gallery was expressed by many national and international visitors. This gallery will provide an open space for conversation on the history of the city which was narrated through stories of the people – a story that also resonates with the history of CSMVS Museum.
The Mumbai Gallery’s exhibition will have land, people, culture, and sea ports as central themes. People are the overarching theme under which the rest would be elaborated. The first Exhibition will be themed around the ‘People of Mumbai’ which will be an ode to the varied communities of Mumbai who have made contributions to the city, historically and currently. The Mumbai gallery is supported by the Hemendra Kothari Foundation and the HT Parekh Foundation.
The tentative opening of the Mumbai gallery is scheduled to be around October/November 2023.

6. CSMVS-TCS Project of Conservation of Museum Building, Digitisation & Archival Research and Publication (2019–2022)

CSMVS began its modernisation programme nearly a decade ago to keep pace with the changing needs and trends of a 21st-century museum. Taking this mission forward, CSMVS has undertaken the comprehensive conservation and preservation of its historic building, up-gradation and digitisation of its collections and archival research, and a publication of a book on the history, architecture and collection of the CSMVS to commemorate the Museum’s Centenary Year in 2022. The project is being supported by the TCS Foundation.

7. Building Illumination Project

Upon signing a Memorandum of Understanding with the Rotary Club of Bombay in November 2018, the Façade and Landscape Lighting of the CSMVS building was completed and inaugurated on 24 April 2019. This project was initiated by Sabyasachi Mukherjee, Director General, CSMVS, and was executed by The Rotary Club of Bombay under the Environment Committee chaired by Priyasri Patodia (Founder/Director – Priyasri Art Gallery, Mumbai) under the presidentship of Vijay Jatia and funded by art aficionado Manoj Israni of Blue Cross.

8. The Solar Project

CSMVS and the Rotary Club of Bombay collaborated in 2015 for the adoption of green policies at the Museum. The Club supported the installation of 48 photovoltaic rooftop panels and around 140 solar panels for the illumination of facades and lawn. The Club also pledged to aid in their maintenance for the upcoming five years. Looking forward, as part of sustainable energy strategy solutions, the following has been planned:

  • Installation of 35 KWp capacity Solar PV Systems
  • Augmentation of the current Rain Water Harvesting System
  • Provisions for a Sewage Treatment Plant

In response to climate change, the Museum aims to play a pivotal role in preserving both its collection and the planet.

9. Manuscript Documentation Project

The Museum has received an amount of ₹ 5 lakhs from Mrs. Mukeeta Jhaveri, Trustee of Shashi -lata Charitable Trust, Mumbai towards the documentation of the Sanskrit and Prakrit manuscript collection in the CSMVS on 8th August 2018.
The purpose of the grant is as follows:
• Photo documentation
• Meta data collection of texts
• Condition reports for each folio
• Collection of research material related to each manuscript
 

10. Research, Documentation and Preservation of Kahu-jo Daro Buddhist Stupa Remains in the CSMVS Collection
commenced in 2021, with the generous support of the Bank of America Global Art Initiative. Spearheaded by the Director-General of CSMVS, Mr. Sabyasachi Mukherjee, the project aims to highlight a multi-cultural period in the history of Undivided India manifested in the form of a century-old collection of relics from the Buddhist Stupa site at Kahu-jo Daro, Mirpurkhas, Sindh.
Currently, the CSMVS hosts one of the biggest collections of the site and this distinctive Buddhist terracotta collection demands keen conservation attention. Under the project, the collection and its provenance history will be researched, documented, published, and the artefacts will be scientifically conserved. As a part of the preservation effort, the collection will be condition-assessed, appropriately treated, and moved into conservation-grade storage units. The project will culminate with a gallery exhibition, and a research publication that shall provide researchers, students, and the public with a deeper knowledge of these valuable artefacts.

11. CSMVS-Tata Trust Art Conservation Initiative Project

The Tata Trusts Art Conservation Initiative proposes to establish, develop and strengthen art conservation centres across India, and to create a cohort of trained art conservators. Executed across 5 zonal institutes and one Academic Institute over a period of four years, one of the objectives of the project will be to conduct advanced material conservation training courses that will help further train practicing conservators and establish standards of competence in the field of art conservation. CSMVS Museum Art Conservation Centre has been selected as the zonal centre in the Western region of India for this project with an outreach in the states of Goa, Gujarat and Maharashtra

12. Art Conservation Resurgence Project

is supported by Sir Dorabji Tata Trust aims to create a series of reference documents that will assist custodians of cultural heritage to take care of their collections.

13. Conservation of the 16th century manuscript Anvar-i-Suhayli

The Persian translation of the Panchatantra fables, the Anvar-i- Suhayli, at the CSMVS Museum, comprises of over 200 illustrations and was created at Emperor Akbar’s atelier. This fragmented manuscript was conserved under the aegis of the Bank of America Global Art Conservation Project. Click here to see the publication of this project.