"Abhorrent" targeting of museum director
Brooklyn Museum director "shaken" by vandalism of home
— In partnership with Arts & Culture podcast
This edition also features: British Museum biography | Tower of London threat | London Transport Museum “devastated”
Happy Friday
We’re halfway through the UK’s General Election campaign (only half!) and the parties have released their manifestos.
So what are they saying on museums, arts and culture?
Unsurprisingly — in the same spirit as most other policies — not much. Interestingly, it’s only the Liberal Democrats that have explicitly pledged to maintain free entry to national museums and galleries. It does still seem inconceivable that the next government — whoever forms it — would look to abolish free admission, but its absence from Tory or Labour promises would make one ever-so-slightly more hesitant to bet the house on it.
Labour has promised to improve “access to cultural assets by requiring publicly funded national museums and galleries to increase the loans they make…to communities across the country.” Which is not only a smack in the face for institutions that already lend many thousands of objects each year, but it makes no acknowledgment that the biggest obstacle to loans is that smaller venues are so chronically underfunded they lack the staff, resources, infrastructure, and simple bandwidth to take an influx of new loans. And that’s before the lack of resources in the nationals to do it from their side. More can be done, but show us the money.
The Conservatives say they will keep their ‘retain and explain’ guidance under review which would win the award for the most meaningless pledge (what does “under review” even mean actually) if it wasn’t for the one that follows saying that Government “has the power to leverage philanthropy for good causes and cultural institutions” and it will “work with individuals, businesses, charities and other networks to find opportunities to unleash this even further.” Nothing screams non-policy more than using the word “unleash.”
The Greens have pledged to invest an extra £5bn over 5 years in combined support for community sports, arts and culture that will keep “local sports facilities, museums, theatres, libraries and art galleries open and thriving.” But, when you realise their plans are based on £85 billion in extra borrowing each year — double (DOUBLE!) what Liz Truss wanted to borrow in her plans that ultimately crashed the economy — I think we can safely file that one away under “for the birds.”
Still, happy voting in 21 days!
— maxwell
— In partnership with Arts & Culture podcast
What's happened to visitor behaviour?
There's evidence that visitor behaviour is changing. And not always for the better.
Since the pandemic, cultural organisations have noticed an evolution in the expectations, attitudes and actions of visitors. This can sometimes be a positive, but there's a growing sense some of this change is unwelcome.
For example, at Manchester Art Gallery they've placed a statement of behavioural expectations in the venue for all visitors to see, so there's no doubt what is expected of them.
At Leeds Castle, they've started offering staff resilience training.
It's a complex subject — and one where learning from peers is a sensible and practical step.
That's why the latest episode of the Arts & Culture podcast is so valuable. A panel of visitor experience experts — including from Leeds Castle and Manchester Museums — discuss their experiences in-depth, and how they're evolving with visitor needs.
Listen here — for free! — or wherever you get your podcasts.
Need To Know
BM’s birthday biography
The British Museum has granted “unprecedented” access to its archive for a major new biography to be published in 2027, ahead of its 275th birthday.
Writer and historian Dominic Selwood has been given “unrestricted access to all papers and archives” and “permission to interview trustees, management and curatorial staff” according to the publisher Canongate, in what is being billed as a first for the institution.
The Museum’s (now-departed) interim director, Sir Mark Jones, said: “The museum has told the world’s stories for three centuries, and we look forward to a book that seeks to tell ours.”
Selwood this week told this newsletter that work on the project has been going on for some time, and that it was green lit under the tenure of previous Director Hartwig Fischer — before the recent theft scandals broke.
He told me that so far he’s been “consistently surprised and delighted” by the “gifted, dedicated and often wonderfully eccentric characters who have inhabited and shaped the museum over the last 270 years” and that they helped turn the museum into “Britain’s most visited building.” (Read more)
Museum Director’s home targeted
The home of the Jewish director of the Brooklyn Museum have been vandalised along with the homes of other leaders of the New York museum, in what is thought to be a coordinated attack.
At Director Anne Pasternak’s apartment, red paint and graffiti were sprayed across the building alongside a banner that accused her of being a “white-supremacist Zionist.”
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul called the graffiti “an abhorrent act of antisemitism.” New York Mayor Eric Adams said the vandalism “is not peaceful protest or free speech” and that “the Police Department will bring the criminals responsible here to justice.”
Pasternak told the New York Times that she was “disgusted and shaken” about the incident. The Brooklyn Museum said it was “deeply troubled” and that there was no place for “violence, vandalism, and intimidation.”
The attacks follow a widely-condemned demonstration outside an exhibition in Manhattan commemorating those killed at an Israeli music festival on October 7th. Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said this protest was “atrocious antisemitism - plain and simple.” (Read more)
News from the UK
Skyhigh threat 🏙 “ Historic England and Historic Royal Palaces have hit out at the City of London Corporation’s draft policies for tall buildings in the Square Mile, saying they put the Tower of London’s UNESCO World Heritage status under "real threat". The planned policies would “severely harm” the 1000 year old Tower and other assets such as St Paul’s Cathedral, and that the City Plan 2040 was "unsound in its current form." (Read more)
🔗 OPINION | A Tokyo developer will demolish a building for spoiling the view. Why doesn’t Britain care about beauty? | Simon Jenkins in the Guardian
Not funny 😡 | Animal rights activists targeted the divisive new official portrait of HM the King as it was on display at the Philip Mould gallery in central London. Group Animal Rising covered the work with large Wallace and Gromit stickers in protest at the work of the RSPCA. Philip Mould confirmed the work was undamaged. The RSCPCA said they were “shocked by this vandalism” and that they “cannot condone illegal activity of any kind.” (Read more)
— Read to the end to see the results of last week’s poll on whether you agree with activists targeting artworks 📊👇
🔗 MUST READ | How to deter the art vandals — punish them properly | Richard Morrison in the Times
Devastating damage 🚇 | London Transport Museum said it was “devastated” after being forced to cancel a popular event due to vandalism of one of its “beautifully restored” 1938 Underground trains. The heritage event would have seen the historic train run back on the Piccadilly line. Elizabeth McKay, Director, said “the proceeds from ticket sales support our work as an education and heritage charity” so it was “truly disappointing that vandals would seek to ruin this experience.” (Read more)
Retelling history ⚔️ | Steve Coogan’s 2022 film about the 2012 discovery of the remains of Richard III is defamatory, a judge has ruled. Richard Taylor, a former deputy registrar at the University of Leicester, is suing over his portrayal in The Lost King where he claims he’s shown behaving in an “abominable way” towards amateur historian Philippa Langley, played by Sally Hawkins. The ruling now means that the case can proceed to a full trial. (Read more)
Dimbleby’s drawings ✏️ | TV icon David Dimbleby is to curate a new exhibition on drawing masterpieces with his daughter. The show — called Drawing the Unspeakable — will be at the Towner gallery in Eastbourne, and it coincides with Dimbleby stepping down as Chair of the venue after a decade. Over 100 works will be on show, including by Barbara Hepworth and James Gillray. Dimbleby said curating the show has been “an exhilarating experience.” (Read more)
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News from around the world
USA 🇺🇸 | Museums have halted plans to hold Kehinde Wiley exhibitions, citing recent allegations of sexual misconduct against the artist, which he has denied. The Minneapolis Institute of Art (MIA) put plans to stage the touring An Archaeology of Silence on hold after several men made accusations against Mr. Wiley. MIA told the New York Times “as a result of these unfortunate allegations we will not be proceeding with this presentation.” The Pérez Art Museum Miami followed and said that it had “suspended plans” to host the show. (Read more)
Canada 🇨🇦 | A historic church and the rare artwork it housed have been gutted by a fire in Toronto. St. Anne's Anglican Church saw its dome destroyed and heavy damage to the rest of the Byzantine-style building that was built in the 1900s. No injuries were reported and it’s not being treated as suspicious. It contained more than 15 works by the famous Group of Seven artists — the only church to feature their work — which are now all destroyed. (Read more)
France 🇫🇷 | A new museum opens in Paris today — dedicated to cheese. The city’s first (likely only) ever cheese museum promises to offer cheesemaking demos, workshops and opportunities to taste the finished products. Its founder — who has spent a decade bringing his vision to reality — said it was a response to the many venues that celebrate wine. “Cheese is also a big thing” he said. (Read more)
Switzerland 🇨🇭 | The art world are at Art Basel this week, one of the world’s biggest art fairs. Predictions of an art market collapse have been dismissed as “doom porn” as sales at the fair are reported to be brisk. Highlight sales include David Zwirner flogging Joan Mitchell’s Sunflowers (1990-91), from the artist’s foundation, for $20m. “It is as lively as it’s ever been” founder of mega-gallery Hauser & Wirth Iwan Wirth told the Art Newspaper. (Read more)
Best of the rest
Grayson’s Progress | Six monumental tapestries by Sir Grayson Perry and inspired by Hogarth’s A Rake’s Progress will go on show at London’s Pitzhanger Manor next month. Pitzhanger previously displayed Hogarth’s famous series. (More)
Regal rivalry | HM The Queen has joked she wants to “nudge” the King from his role as patron of the Garden Museum. On her third visit to the museum in 12 months she hailed it “as such a special place.” (More)
Final destination | It’s taken 8 years, but a now ‘retired’ Glasgow subway carriage from 1980 has been moved to the Riverside Museum. The 12 tonne item is on display from today, and joins three other subway carriages in the collection. (More)
Protest shutdown | Goldsmiths University’s Center for Contemporary Art (CCA) has closed until October due to a student occupation by group Goldsmiths for Palestine. We “are unable to fulfil the terms required by our insurers for keeping artworks safe” CCA said. (More)
Job hunting? | Fancy looking after the collections of the British Museum, for a cool £120,000 a year? Applications to replace the resigned Jonathan Williams are live, although curiously you won’t get the title Deputy Director. (More)
👀 Last week’s most clicked news story | Shortlisted designs revealed for London's transatlantic slavery memorial
📊 Last week’s poll results | Do you support the recent actions by activists targeting art works? | ✅ ✅ Yes — it’s necessary at all costs 7% | ✅ Yes — but only if there is no damage 22% | ❌ No — art should be off limits 71%
📩 Missed my last newsletter? | Meg Molloy writes about how she is giving working class people a bigger voice in the art world through her new club
— Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed this edition, please consider making a small donation as a thank you for my time writing it. Every penny is gratefully received.