The Trinidad and Tobago Carnival Museum (TTCM) says it has been forced to shut down its operations ‘until further notice’ even as it reiterated its commitment ‘to preserving and celebrating the rich cultural heritage of Trinidad and Tobago Carnival’.
In a statement, the museum director and chairman of the TTCM steering committee, Kenny Attai, said the museum had been forced to close its doors as from October 1 and that the said the decision came following an ‘extremely difficult’ year and a half in securing financial support for the national cultural institution.
‘Through a few friends and well-wishers along with our own personal funding and the tremendous outreach of volunteers we were able to keep the museum open to the public this year,’ he said.
‘We thank everyone who has supported, visited, volunteered, partnered and believed in our mission to create a Home for Carnival. Our work continues,’ theTTCM said in a statement posted on its website.
The museum was incorporated as a non-governmental organisation in March 2021 with the aim of creating a space where Trinidad and Tobago’s Carnival heritage could be collected, preserved and made available to the public for education, entertainment and enlightenment.
According to the release, the project gained national and international attention and received the award of the iconic Penny Bank building in 2022 to be repurposed as a Carnival Museum.
The museum said the Penny Bank building brought added historic value to the project, while internal renovations were 80 per cent completed through an early grant from the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and the Arts.
To date, the museum has hosted seven successive exhibitions, more than 20 school tours and welcomed more than 4,000 visitors.
Attai thanked those who supported the museum’s mission, including volunteers, suppliers and organisations and individuals who provided resources and collaborated with the project and that the museum was intended to be the first phase towards a full-scale Carnival museum.
‘We take this opportunity to once again thank all those who believed in the mission and partnered or collaborated with us in creating a Home for Carnival so that our rich cultural heritage can be preserved,’ Attai said, expressing the hope that Trinidad and Tobago would recognise the value of preserving the country’s Carnival heritage and the creativity and ingenuity of its people.
‘It is our sincere hope that Trinidad and Tobago sees the value of recognizing what we have and those who brought us joy and pride since 1841 with the creativity and ingenuity of our people, lest it is taken and owned by others,’ he added.