Timetable until the opening of the exhibition on 17 June 2023 with the different tasks for its realisation.
Operational planning of the exhibition
42% of Swiss people do volunteer work on a regular basis, which represents 660 million hours of work and around CHF 34 billion (source: Federal Statistical Office). In the Neuchâtel region, several museums operate thanks to the voluntary work of their members: among them, the Maison blanche Le Corbusier in La Chaux-de-Fonds (4’000 visitors a year), the Musée d’histoire in Le Landeron (1’500 visitors) and the Musée d’art et d’histoire in La Neuveville (800 visitors). For other similar museums, see my blog.
These museums have limited opening hours due to their voluntary organization. As a consequence, they only open eight months a year (from April to November) and at weekends. Admission is sometimes free, with a kitty at the exit for donations.
Choice of organisation for our project
For the exhibition project at the Hirsch Pavilion, the EspaceTemps association has decided to follow the examples of the Musée d’histoire in Le Landeron and the Musée d’art et d’histoire in La Neuveville.
The exhibition will therefore be open nine months a year (approximately 80 days) from the beginning of March to the end of November. On Saturdays and Sundays, the Hirsch Pavilion will be open from 2 to 5 pm. One Friday a month, it will open in the evening too, from
8 to 11 pm in order to offer visitors the chance to observe the sky with the Zeiss telescope (this activity won’t be possible during Summer season, when it gets dark around midnight). Guided tours will take place all around the year, subject to booking and the availability of guides. Four public lectures will also be held during the year. Monthly workshops on time measurement, spectroscopy and seismology will be held several times a year.
The EspaceTemps association expects between 1’500 and 2’000 visitors per year for the first three years.
Even though the exhibition will be a voluntary organization, I think it is important to pay the guides and guardians. The Musée d’histoire in Le Landeron and the Musée d’art et d’histoire in La Neuveville operate in this way. Moreover, as the number of members of the EspaceTemps is not elevated at the moment, we will have the possibility to hire students, unemployed persons, pensioners, etc.
