'Viajando a la Luna' Workshop

Within the framework of ‘De la Luna al museo’ exhibition, where original lunar rocks are on display, Eduardo Frei Montalva House Museum together with the Museo Nacional de Historia Natural (National Natural History Museum) and the Museo Nacional Aeronáutico y del Espacio invite you to take part in the 5^th edition of ‘VIajando a la Luna’ workshop. Its main aim is to foster an up-to-date, didactic view of the 7 Apollo missions, the details of the space travels, and the importance of rockets on them. Registrations here.

The ‘Viajando a la Luna’ workshop will be headed by the writer, scientific reporter, astronomy specialist, teacher and the man in charge of basic astronomy courses, Jorge Ianiszewski. In addition to, he is the ‘Círculo Astronómico’ website designer and editor, and ‘Guía de los cielos australes’ book author, which is already in its 3^rd edition.

This activity includes three levels where children could: 1) See a rocket launch. 2) Get into a room called ‘Sala Espacio’ where kids will be able to understand the functioning of a spacecraft and the stages of the first moon landing through didactic figures. 3) Get to know the last photographs of the lunar panorama revealed by NASA.

‘From the Moon to the Museum’

The lunar rocks

This temporary exhibition is located within a giant rocket –similar to the ones used by NASA- with fragments of lunar rocks donated to Chile by the U.S. government after Apollo 11 and Apollo 17 missions, currently becoming part of the Eduardo Frei Montalva House Museum and Museo Nacional de Historia Natural collection respectively. In 2009, both institutions joined to bring to life a unique exhibition that will be on display for free until April 2012 at Museo Nacional Aeronáutico y del Espacio.

For further information call (+562) 881 86 74 or contact us at: contacto@casamuseoeduardofrei.cl

We welcome your support and help spreading the word.

Eduardo Frei’s Presidential Sash

Eduardo Frei Montalva House Museum, supporting Museo Histórico Nacional and the exhibition called ‘Símbolos de Honor. Bandas y condecoraciones,’ provided the sash Eduardo Frei Montalva used during his term of office, which currently takes part of the permanent collection of the House Museum. Over 350 heritage objects belonging to former president and his family are included in this permanent collection, highlighting dresses, awards, pictures, and a private Chilean painting collection.

Museo Histórico Nacional (MHN) exhibition gathers important diplomatic awards and Chilean presidential sashes, allowing visitors to get to know from the O’Higgings’ cummerbund and sashes belonging to 19^th and 20^th century presidents, to sashes belonging to Eduardo Frei Montalva, Salvador Allende, Augusto Pinochet, Patricio Aylwin, Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle, Ricardo Lagos, Michelle Bachellet and the current President, Sebastián Piñera.

The MHN shows part of its collection of Chilean presidential sashes and diplomatic awards through the 49 objects on display. These symbols –given to different national representatives worldwide– stand out mainly due to its important heritage value, beauty, and representativeness. This exhibition, inaugurated on November 24^th, 2011, will be open to the public until March 2012 at Salón Gobernadores in MHN.

Maite Gallego, House Museum Assistant Director, receiving a MHN award

This time, the collection on display becomes the witness of the diverse bonds achieved by presidents and diplomats, representing Chile on the international scene, from independence until today.

Eduardo Frei Montalva House Museum is grateful to Museo Histórico Nacional for the award received by contributing to the exhibition with part of our collection, witnessing our history of Republic.

The Museo Histórico Nacional (MHN) is open from Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00 hrs to 17:30 hrs; continuous schedule. Rates: CLP$600 Adults, CLP$300 seniors, university students, and delegations. School students free entrance. Free entrance on Sundays.

]]> http://www.casamuseoeduardofrei.cl/site-eng/2012/01/eduardo-frei%e2%80%99s-presidential-sash-on-display-at-the-mhn/feed/ 0 http://www.casamuseoeduardofrei.cl/site-eng/2012/01/object-of-the-month-gifts-received-after-chilean-nationalization-of-copper-industry/ http://www.casamuseoeduardofrei.cl/site-eng/2012/01/object-of-the-month-gifts-received-after-chilean-nationalization-of-copper-industry/#comments Wed, 04 Jan 2012 17:47:17 +0000 Casa Museo http://www.casamuseoeduardofrei.cl/site-eng/?p=3767 During January 2012, Eduardo Frei Montalva House Museum will particularly exhibit the gifts given to Eduardo Frei Montalva by Chuquicamata, El Teniente, and Río Blanco mines, after 46 years of the publication of the Chilean Nationalization of Copper Law.

Display items

Part of the current collection kept by the only House Museum dedicated to a former president, lets us glimpse the deep transformations the country lived during Eduardo Frei Montalva’s administration (1964 – 1970). One of these objects is the commemorative scissors used to launch El Teniente deposit, kept by the former president in a special display at the library of the first floor, place known as ‘La Moneda Chica’.

Historically, the Nationalization of Chilean Copper –together with the ‘Reforma Agraria’ (Agrarian Reform) and ‘Promoción Popular’ (Social Promotion)- marked a significant change in social and economic terms. The final aim of this measure was to get the government involved in the exploitation and commercialization of this precious mineral from Chile, along with improving the quality of life for country’s miners and their families.

Eduardo Frei Montalva inaugurating Minera Andina

“If agriculture is and is meant to be able to ensure life in peace and independence, mining is and is meant to be the decisive instrument in our battle through world markets; (…) Besides the effort implied when trying to feed ourselves, there is no existent media as dramatic, important and deep to take over our development as mining exportation” stated Eduardo Frei Montalva with conviction from the times of his presidential candidacy (1).

The former president went through the country on many occasions, communicating his government’s plans and observing on site, the profound transformations Chile was experiencing during his mandate. As a result of this vision, some of the established goals in his government regarding to extraction, manufacture, and commercialization of copper were:

• The widest possible participation of Chilean government in the increase of production.
• To ensure the maximum employment for Chileans workers involved in the copper industry, as well as ensuring the conditions of justice, safety and welfare.
• Trade of the precious mineral with all the countries around the globe, without any other limitation than the interest Chile may have.

In order to materialize the aforementioned process during his mandate, the following legislations were enacted: ‘Chileanisation of Copper’ (1966) and ‘Agreed-upon Nationalization’ (1967). This situation triggered a two-phase process that changed the copper industry at a national level, which continues to influence it up to today.

The first stage counted on the creation of Corporación del Cobre (precursor of the current Codelco), institution responsible for supervising the production and international sale, representing Chile in Sociedades Mineras Mixtas (Mixed Mining Join-stock Company). In order to be classified as a mixed join-stock company, the government had to acquire at least a 25% stake.

Commemorative plaque given by Chuquicamata miners

The second stage started to be implemented in 1969, where the Chilean government purchased 51% of the shares in the American company called ‘Anaconda Company’, which covered Chuquicamata, El Salvador, and Potrerillos mines.

When Eduardo Frei Montalva left office, the Chilean government played a decisive role in the direction, commercialization, and refining of Chilean copper. These interventions regarded the technical and commercial conditions of the world market, and also brought about a substantial increase in copper production from 617,000 tones in 1964 to 1,000,000 tones in 1970.

We invite you to get to know part of the gifts given to the former president by mining deposits, connecting us with the deep transformations the country experienced in economical, political, and social terms as the ‘Chilenisation of Copper’.

• Tours: Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00 hrs – 06:00 hrs.
• Address: 683 Hindenburg, Barrio Italia, Providencia
• Phone: (02) 881 86 74
• Email: contacto@casamuseoeduardofrei.cl
• Object of the month: Free entrance
• Access to the House Museum: Adults CLP$ 1,300 | Students, children, and seniors CLP$ 700.

(1) Comando Nacional Candidatura Eduardo Frei Montalva. Chile 1964-1970. Santiago, 1964. p.  26

This museum was declared a National Monument in 2005 and maintains all of its cultural heritage. More than 350 objects and 3,600 bibliographic volumes comprise its exhibitions. Visitors will be able to observe: textiles, pictorial works, coin collections and decorations. As well as furniture, decorative and household objects, such as: tableware, cutlery, glassware, platters. Also included are: clothing, personal and family photographs and personal items of the former President and his family.

Visitors will be surprised by the “Moneda Chica” (Small Moneda Palace”). It was the room where President Eduardo Frei Montalva, held meetings with various political and cultural figures, among them: Queen Elizabeth II, Salvador Allende and Gabriela Mistral.

Another oustanding element of the museum is the dining room, whose decoration has been mantained the same as the day when the former President received Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip of Edinburgh.

We’ll be waiting for your visit!

Visit of senior citizens from Talca.

Address: Hindenburg 683, Providencia.

Opening hours: Tuesdays to Sundays 10:00 – 6:00 pm.

Guided Tour duration: 40 minutes approximately.

Admission Price: $ 1300 pesos. Senior Citizens: $ 700 pesos.

For more information please call: 881 86 74

E-mail: contacto@casamuseoeduardofrei.cl

One of the twelve engravings by Guayasamín

The exhibition which reveals the relationship between art and politics during the 60s in Chile will be part of the 2012 Arts Festival in Valparaíso, which will be held in the said city from Thursday the 26th through Sunday the 29th, January.

This is the first regional itinerancy, Eduardo Frei Montalva House Museum along with El Farol room along with the Outreach Center from University of Valparaíso exhibit Oswaldo Guayasamín’s original engravings, given to the former President during his visit to Chile in 1969 on the occasion of his exhibition “La Edad de la Ira” at the Chilean National Museum of Fine Arts.

During the said occasion the artist painted in only two hours the portrait of Eduardo Frei Montalva that today takes part of the permanent painting collection in the House Museum located in Santiago, whose replica could be also appreciated during this exhibition.

“Getting closer to regions for the first time and with this exhibition that was so successful in Santiago presents a great satisfaction for us. You may find art, culture and history all in the same place in this exhibition” states Maite Gallego, Deputy Director of Eduardo Frei Montalva House Museum.

Portrait of Eduardo Frei M. Guayasamín (1969)

“For University of Valparaíso, whose aim is contributing to the culture development, it is remarkable to bring this exhibition to the Valparaíso region. Thanks to such activities it is that our institution accomplishes its public and state-owned university mission, which bringing culture to the community” affirms David Carillo, Director of Outreach and Communications at University of Valparaíso.

The twelve engravings were done at the Inti Cori Studio in Quito, in October, 1968 and belong to a limited edition of 300 numbered copies signed by the Ecuadorian artist.

Guayasamín’s visit to Chile during the late 1960s was the result of an invitation made by the Government of Chile, headed by the then Minister of Foreign Affairs, Gabriel Valdés S. during Eduardo Frei Montalva’s administration.

Temporary exhibition “Guayasamín en Chile, 1969”

• 3 through 29 January.
• Free entrance
• Address: 1113 Blanco Street, Valparaíso.
• Hours: Monday through Friday, 11:00 am-7:00 pm. Saturday 28  and Sunday 29 11:00 am-2:00 pm.
• Phones: (032) 2507653 – (02) 881 86 74

Merry Christmas and best wishes for 2012

2011 is coming to an end and Eduardo Frei Montalva House Museum wishes to thank all its visitors for being with us: Students, Academics, Seniors, Children and Press. We look forward to your continued support on the activities and challenges in the coming 2012.

Our warm and sincere wishes on behalf of the only House Museum dedicated to a former Chilean president, with over 350 heritage objects, a private collection of Chilean paintings, original furniture, historical and photographic archives, along with educational resources.

Eduardo Frei Montalva House Museum Staff.

• Address: 683 Hindenburg, Barrio Italia, Providencia, Santiago.
• Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00 to 18:00 hrs.
• For further information: (56 -2) 881 86 74.
• Open all year around (except in February).
• *All tours are guided.
• E-mail: contacto@casamuseoeduardofrei.cl

Casa Museo Eduardo Frei Montalva

On Friday 16^th December, symbolic cultural locations of Barrio Italia, Bellas Artes, Matucana, and República neighborhoods will be opening to the public for free from 18:00 to 00:00 hrs. This initiative seeks to bring all the community into closer contact with heritage, culture, and visual arts.

• Barrio Italia (Providencia)

On the occasion of this year’s centenary celebration of the birth of Eduardo Frei Montalva, his house (that was turned into a museum) invites you to wander its two stories that gathers over 350 objects belonging to former President, and a rich collection of Chilean painting. It is sure to be an inviting experience to revisit the ‘60s. Casa Museo Eduardo Frei Montalva (Metro Salvador, L1, Metro Santa Isabel, L5).

Two collective exhibitions will take place some few steps away from the Casa Museo (House-Museum). The first exhibition shall be undertaken by Galería Die Ecke (1208 José Manuel Infante Avenue) displaying a selection of the year’s best works and major works by Johanna Unzueta, Catalina Bauer, Isidora Correa, Julen Birke, Nicolás Rupcich, Alejandra Prieto, Francisca Benítez, among others. The second exhibition is to be held at Galería Florencia Loewenthal (934 Álvarez Condarco St.), and is considered to surprise with the exhibition project “Volume II: Canciones de amor y otras pasiones de origen romántico,” along with Gabriella Dobo, Marcos Sánchez, and Paula Dittborn’s works.

Continuing along José Manuel Infante Street at no.1428, Galería Yono shall inaugurate a Paula de Solminihac’s exhibition.

Sala Arte Fundación Telefónica, within the framework of the celebration of its fifteen years, shall exhibit “Picasso: La Belleza Múltiple” (Picasso: The Multiple Beauty) at Plaza Italia. This exhibition – which is the world’s largest exhibition of this kind ever held– comes to South America for the first time and comprises more than 70 original etchings, engravings, and lithographies of the said artist. These works were developed between 1904 and 1971, capturing the different techniques and stages of the Picassian expression. 111 Providencia Avenue.

Exhibition at Benjamín Vicuña Mackena Museum

Only a couple of blocks away, Benjamín Vicuña Mackenna Museum will offer opera selections at 20:00 hrs. and 21:00 hrs., a perfect occasion to pamper yourself with viceregal music. Both shows will be performed by the Amicus choir and the Marcelo Olivari Music Academy. Moreover, the Temporary Collective Exhibition called “Extramuros” will be open to the public.

Guided tours will also be carried out to the permanent exhibition and the original, recently restored library that belonged to Benjamín Vicuña Mackenna. 94 Vicuña Mackenna Avenue.

• Barrio Bellas Artes – Lastarria (Downtown Santiago)

Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes (National Fine Arts Museum): the exhibition “Matta 100” and the documentary called “Centenario”, among other exhibitions. Parque Forestal Avenue.

A special activity undertaken by Plop! Galería shall surprise the public by focusing on René Ríos Oettinger, who was also known as Pepo, a key figure of the Latin American comic strips.

Museo de las Artes Visuales, MAVI (Visual Arts Musem). Winners of the 6th Art Contest for Youngsters called “Cabeza de Ratón,” José Victorino Lastarria.

Centro Gabriela Mistral, GAM. Part of the programme includes the exhibition of “Informe País” (contemporary art) and “Tesoros Chilenos” (folk art). 227 Libertador Bernardo O’Higgins Avenue.

GAM. Photo taken by Jorge Sánchez

Centro de Extensión UC shall exhibit “El arte de Andy Warhol,” work by the outstanding American artist well-known by his contributions to Pop Art. 390 Alameda Street.

• Barrio República (Downtown Santiago)

Museo de la Solidaridad Salvador Allende (Salvador Allende Solidarity Museum) shall be exhibiting “Pecio” and “Relatos Archivados.“ 475 República Street.

• Barrio Matucana

Museo de la Memoria y los Derechos Humanos (Memory and Human Rights Museum) shall present a play called “Altazor” at 21:00 hrs. 501 Matucana Avenue.

Museo de Arte Contemporáneo, MAC (Contemporary Art Museum) exhibits “Imagen Local” and the play called “Casa Vacía” from 19:00 hrs. onwards. 464 Matucana Avenue.

Centro Cultural Matucana 100 (Matucana 100 Cultural Center) shall hold the project called “Colección de imágenes”. 100 Matucana Avenue.

A telescopes setup will be carried out by Planetario (planetary) in its esplanade between 20:00 and 23:00 hrs. Pre-registrations at contactoplanetario@usach.cl. 3349 Libertador Bernardo O’Higgins Avenue.

Follow this event in facebook.

You cannot miss it!

Objects in exhibition

As usual, Eduardo Frei Montalva House-Museum will exhibit a new Object of the Month highlighting a different facet of the former President. In this opportunity we will get to know his leadership and international prestige by means of several writings and a picture as member of the Brandt Commission. These items will be exhibited in a glass cabinet located in the central hall of the museum so the public can directly appreciate them.

Once Eduardo Frei Montalva left the Presidence in 1970, Eduardo Frei Montalva’s public life did not stop. On the contrary, his broad experience as congress delegate and his being a former President will take him to perform a series of international journeys, reporting his deep knowledge in economic, political and social subjects, which still remain.

Even though the former President was internationally recognized since the 50s, his participation in the Brandt Commission between 1977 and 1981 was the zenith of his intellectual career.  The said commission, created by the former Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany and Nobel Peace Prize (1971) Willy Brandt, had the purpose of gathering a number of international experts that represented the entire world, so they could contribute to the resolution of economic and social issues between developed and developing countries.

The Commission was headed by Brandt and was composed of 17 members, being Frei Montalva, along with Rodrigo Botero, former Treasurer of Colombia, and Shridtah Ramphal, former International Affairs Minister of Guyana, the three Latin-Americans called.

The panel had eleven sessions in different countries such as Germany, Switzerland, Mali, the United States and Malaysia, concluding that the contemporary world presents clear inequalities due to new problems that affect societies and the failure of the economic system.  “The effort has not conduced to solve the underlying problem: The gap between the nations of high development and the rest of the world”, expressed Frei Montalva in the context of an international economic landscape that he identified as full of malaise and uncertainty.

However, the former President concludes with a constructive vision stating that “the international cooperation is an irreplaceable contribution to the solution of the underlying problems of these countries, as long as they are able to correct and assume their deficiencies in order to carry out the economic and social development with their people’s participation”.

The original report, along with the Spanish version and other books that aroused from the Brandt Report, form part of the personal library of the former President, located in the House Museum.

We kindly invite you to know in depth the leader of opinion facet of the former President, which is internationally known and we mean to highlight through this exhibition.

Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00 hrs – 18:00 hrs.

Address: 683 Hindenburg Street, Barrio Italia, Providencia.

Phone: (02) 881 86 74

Email: contacto@casamuseoeduardofrei.cl

Object of the month: FREE ENTRANCE.

Access to the House Museum: Adults $1,300. Students, seniors and children $700

Old telephone the former President acquired

Among the most unknown aspects about Eduardo Frei Montalva were his peculiar aesthetic curiosity and the time he used to spend decorating his house. Indeed, keeping a cozy atmosphere at the different resting, work, and meeting places was important for him. These details are clearly reflected in the House-Museum’s furniture, private works of art collection, engravings, and decor items.

The desk and library of the house that sheltered Eduardo Frei for over forty years bear witness to the taste for historicist styles, standing out the English George IV Mahogany Canterbury Music Stand, together with the Portuguese Neo-baroque Carved Jacaranda Desk. The latter was acquired –in a poor state– in an antiquary located at San Pablo Street getting to Matucana Street. However, the former president had the vision to restore it and fix it. Currently, it is one of the most admired objects at the House-Museum.

Eduardo Frei Montalva with his family in "La Moneda Chica"

At his Library –meeting point and reception hall for authorities-, which was well-known as the “Moneda Chica” (Small Mint Palace), a Louis Philippe Mahogany Veneered Cabinet Secretaire stands out, where the original old telephone is -object to be especially exhibited for the first time during November-.

However, where do these hobbies and good taste come from? It is said that the former president was a frequent visitor of antiquaries, and it is also said he was advised by Ramón Eyzaguirre, auctioneer of a famous auction house founded in 1890 in Santiago. He also stored objects that could possibly like him.

Furthermore, the travels through Europe, the United States, and different Latin-American countries during his term as a Senator –and during his subsequent presidency- became also an opportunity to acquire different décor objects and heritage items. These items were given by other heads of state and can be observed in the House-Museum together with original engravings by Giovanni Battista Piranesi –famed eighteenth-century Italian engraver-. On the other hand, religious figures from Quito reveal the interest shown by Eduardo Frei Montalva in the different artistic expressions.

Old telephone in the library

Eduardo Frei Montalva House-Museum invites you to experience this “Object of the month” that will give you an insight into the artistic and cultural facet of the former President, which is reflected in the choice of his most private objects.

• Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 hrs. to 18:00 hrs.
• Address: Hindenburg 683 Street, Barrio Italia, Providencia
• Telephone Number:  (02) 881 86 74
• E-mail: contacto@casamuseoeduardofrei.cl
• Object of the month: Free entrance.
• Admission Fee: CLP$1300 general public – CLP$700 students, children and seniors.
• All the House-Museum tours are guided.

Objects in exhibition

One of the most interesting characteristics of the former President’s life was his relationship with Arts, labour that he developed in a daily basis through his numerous letters. However, his most important work were the sixteen books that he wrote. He also worked as a journalist for national written media. Some of the magazines and journals where he published his articles were: la Revista de Estudiantes Católicos (Catholic Students Magazine), where he used to analyse social, historical and cultural subjects from a Christian perspective,  Diario Ilustrado (the Ilustrated Journal), Lircay and El Tarapacá, journals where he got to be director. He also wrote for the Política y Espíritu (Politics and Spirit) magazine.

Hist first known article was called “Don Ventura Blanco Viel” (1930) after one of his professors at Catholic University of Chile Law School who had great influence on his formation. The article was published in the Catholic Students Magazine, and one copy is currently printed next to other texts from that time, in addition to the more than 3,500 exemplars divided on the two libraries of the House Museum.

At the beginning of his carrer as a journalist, Eduardo Frei Montalva let people see his social Christian ideas and his opinion of the society. One example is his 1934 article “About the educational issue” that criticised the excessive working load that high school students used to have.   “In our system, students study, study and study. They never have the chance to think. Their memory works, but neither their intelligence nor their character are shaped”

Eduardo Frei Montalva's desk

His experience as a journalist was increasing. It is then when the Ilustrated Journal and Lircay, known afterwards as Verdad and El Mercurio. Those journals requested him to work as a correspondent. His tasks were to inform under his perspective how Europe was being politically and socially configured on the edge of the Second World War. His writing’s editorial line refers to fascism and its incompatibilities with the Christian values that he supported, along with the danger that totalitarian systems involve.

Arriving in Chile in 1934 he becomes the first plant editor of the Ilustrated Journal, where he wrote more than 40 articles.

Working on the aforementioned editorial media, with only 24 years old the young attorney accepts his first important position: Director of El Tarapacá journal from Iquique. The two-year experience acquired at that city will be essential to his later development as an article writer, editor and journalism figure, being involved from the editorial writing to the impression of every copy.

In 1943, the former President already lives with his family in his Hindenburg St. house that is today a museum. His work place was located on the first floor, the current dressing room, where he wrote not only articles, but also letters that he used to exchange with prominent people such as Gabriela Mistral, Jacques Maritian and the Vatican Secretary Monsegnor Giovanni Baptista Montini, who shall later become Pope Paul VI. Years later, in 1965 the Pope gifts him in Rome a Madonna and Child sculpture, which is currently part of the House Museum Collection.

However, with the creation of Política y Espíritu Magazine (1945) Eduardo Frei Montalva eventually makes concrete his project of keeping a close and permanent communication with national public. In this media, the former President was editor and wrote around 30 editorials from his personal perspective, free to inform and form reader’s opinion, transmitting his new social order message. “We defend two essential principles inherent to the dignity of men: Justice and liberty…” -Stated one of his writings.

We kindly invite you to visit the house where Eduardo Frei Montalva lived, to remember part of his history as a writer, where life experiences are combined with political charges and public life, which describe his coherence between writing and intellectual thought.

See you there!