The Museum of Circus Art is the first and only museum of its kind in Ukraine. The initiative of its creation belongs to the public organization " Circus Union of Kobzov ", in particular, its President Nikolai Kobzov . The opening of this museum in Kiev took place on May 21, 2007 . The museum is located on the territory of the monument of landscape art Park Nyvky. At one time, this picturesque corner of Kiev was called "Vasilkovskaya Dacha", which was owned by Governor-General Illarion Vasilkov. Subsequently, the site was transferred to the Holy Trinity Monastery, and then to the personal jurisdiction of Nikita Khrushchev. Thus, people who come to the museum, already on the approaches to it, have the opportunity to admire the amazing beauty of nature. A certain distance from the bustle of the city makes familiarity with the unique exhibition of the museum even more memorable.
Exposure
To date, the museum of circus art in Kiev has a fairly weighty collection, which has more than 2 thousand exhibits. The exposition is constantly expanding, which is carried out both by acquisitions and by items donated by circus dynasties we, collectors and just connoisseurs of circus art. Among the rare exhibits are the first posters , costumes of artists, rare autographed photographs, props, paintings, pictures , a poster and sculptures . The visitors are offered reviews and articles of journalists of different generations and visual materials related to the circus. The center of the exhibition is a circus tent in miniature and an operating locomotive of the 1926th edition, in which animals of the legendary Mikhail Zollo drove through the circus arenas.
Thanks to the efforts of the museum staff a large library of books has been created that tell about the circus. The pride of the circus art museum in Kiev is the festival of the award of Mikhail Zollo, Elena Grin, Nikolai Kobzov, Irina Kashcheeva, Mikhail Rybakov and many other circus stars. Anatoly Zalevsky's award, received by the artist at the 23rd Golden Clown International Circus Festival in Monte-Carlo (1999), draws attention. A tour of the museum of circus art introduces visitors to the centuries-old traditions of circus art, starting with street booths and ending with the achievements of contemporaries. The museum collection is interesting not only to fans of circus art, but also to professionals, art historians and researchers of the history of the circus.