Glasgow loses £3m Rodin sculpture
Museums service admits it's misplaced the French masterpiece
— In partnership with Better Lemon Creative Audio
Also in this edition: British Museum’s stolen items exhibition, Tate Modern’s viewing platform saga ends, human remains removed from display, Cleveland Museum sues NYC authorities, new English Heritage CEO
Happy Friday.
An extremely interesting comment piece caught my eye this week. The Times Chief Art Critic Laura Freeman wrote about how a trip to the new Mark Rothko retrospective at the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris got her thinking about corporate sponsorship in museums and galleries (the clue is in the name). It’s a passionate call for for more business cash to flow into arts institutions. FWIW, I can’t find a word I disagree with. We do “need a much better, brasher, more boastful culture of arts philanthropy in the UK.”
But while implicit in the piece, I would perhaps be explicit here that this is increasingly urgent when it comes to our local and regional museums. With Birmingham bust and threatening to sell off its cultural venues, Hampshire halving its museums budget, Glasgow axing 30% of collections staff, and every single local authority facing unprecedented financial strain, it really is one of the only remaining options to maintain services. There are HUGE challenges to raising money from business (and individuals for that matter) outside of the capital. That cannot be over emphasised. But it’s increasingly corporate cash or bust. It’s clear it’s where energies need to be directed.
Before we head into this week’s news, a reminder that if you missed my latest interview edition which landed in your inbox on Weds, you catch up here. In it, I spoke to the Deputy Director of the National Galleries of Scotland to get the lowdown on their £38 million new home for Scottish art. An extremely complex project was the takeaway.
Maxwell
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— In Partnership with Better Lemon Creative Audio
Mummies in museums
Should there be mummies in your museum? Is it ethical to display them? And why are they there? These are the important questions explored in a brand new episode of podcast We the Museum.
Created by Better Lemon Creative Audio, We the Museum is the podcast for museum workers. Each episode features museum workers in the US and beyond, exploring ideas, programs, and exhibitions that inform and inspire.
This week's new episode sees host Hannah Hethmon speak to museum ethics expert Dr. Angela Stienne on the rights and wrongs — and everything in between — of displaying ancient Egyptian mummified remains in museums.
Listen here, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Need To Know
“Inside job” exhibition
The British Museum is planning an exhibition around some of the 350 items that are confirmed to have been recovered after they were stolen by a senior curator as part of an “inside job”. Chair George Osborne told a government committee that “we have the makings of a good exhibition that was not previously planned.”
Speaking to MPs, he was also scathing about the previous Director’s handling of the theft allegations which emerged this summer. An independent review of the Museum’s response is due in December.
It was also revealed in the committee session that following the thefts — which are likely to have begun 20-25 years ago — it’s now known the museum has 2.4m uncatalogued or partially catalogued objects they’ve pledged to properly register. It’ll take five years and £10m. No details on how it’ll be funded have been revealed.
Osborne said the museum had upgraded its whistleblowing policy, and staff could no longer visit the museum’s stores unaccompanied. (Read more)
Rodin masterpiece lost
Museum bosses in Glasgow have admitted they have lost a sculpture by Auguste Rodin thought to be worth £3m.
A plaster version of a figure in the famous Les Bourgeois de Calais work was purchased in 1901 from the artist and displayed in Kelvingrove Park in 1949. It was damaged in that display, and its whereabouts are now unknown. The loss was described as '"utterly shameful" by the Paris-based Comite Rodin, which publicises and catalogues Rodin's work.
The sculpture is among almost 1,750 items currently listed as missing or stolen from Scotland’s public museums. Others include gold coins related to Mary Queen of Scots — which are at the centre of a police investigation — and [er] Billy Connolly’s banjo.
A spokesperson for Glasgow Life who runs the city’s collection said cataloguing and storage had “improved significantly” since its founding in the 1860s, and that it had spent 20 years "conducting an inventory" of items. (Read more)
News from the UK
Manc venue opens | After a soft opening [ahem] this summer with a Yayoi Kusama show, Manchester’s new £242m arts venue is now officially complete. Described as “the most important cultural development in Europe,” Aviva Studios has kicked off with a dance reinterpretation of the Matrix by director Danny Boyle [yes really]. £130m over-budget, the much delayed project will now be home to Manchester International Festival. (Read more)
🔗 MORE: 24 hour party precinct: inside Manchester’s Aviva Studios – where even the loos are a stage
University shutters museum | Middlesex University is axing its Museum of Domestic Design and Architecture (MoDA) and is seeking new homes for the collections. “The university is no longer in a position to support this important resource” a statement said, and all operations will cease by July 2024. “Like many institutions in the higher education sector, Middlesex University faces huge financial challenges” they added. (Read more)
Millionaires claim victory | The long-running dispute between Tate Modern and the residents of neighbouring luxury flats over the gallery’s viewing platform has come to an end. After the Supreme Court ruled that Tate had caused a “nuisance” by allowing visitors to “snoop” into the multi-million pound apartments, the gallery has agreed it will keep half the platform permanently closed. The north half has since reopened. The solution came instead of the option for Tate to pay damages. (Read more)
Model acquisition victory | The world’s only known scale model of HMS Victory from the time of the Battle of Trafalgar has been acquired by the National Museum of the Royal Navy — and it goes on public display tomorrow, the 218th anniversary of the battle. The 1:48 scale model, which measures 142cm long, was acquired with funding support from the National Heritage Memorial Fund. It’s likened to a perfect 3D prototype. (Read more)
Rome’s soldiers spotlighted | Ancient Rome’s soldiers will be the subject of a major blockbuster exhibition at the British Museum in the spring. Legion: Life in the Roman Army will show 200 objects telling story of the daily lives of the men, women and children who formed the machine that helped the Empire grow. The world’s only intact legionary shield — being exhibited in Britain for the first time — is a highlight. (Read more)
News from around the world
USA | All human remains are to be pulled from display at the American Museum of Natural History in NYC. The museum announced the move was part of a full overhaul of its stewardship of 12,000 human remains in its collection which it is says were acquired “by extreme imbalances of power.” The collection unusually includes the bodies of New Yorkers who died as recently as the 1940s. (Read more)
Italy | The heirs of former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi are struggling to decide what to do with his 25,000-strong art collection, which is mostly worthless. It’s costing €800,000 a year to store the works he mainly bought from TV auctions on late-night shopping channels. It’s thought Berlusconi spent €20m on the works which have been described as “daubs”. His children will likely dismantle the collection, it’s reported. (Read more)
Netherlands | Two weeks ago this newsletter brought you news that the Van Gogh Museum shop was mobbed by scalpers trying to get their hands on limited-edition Pokemon cards as part of a new partnership. Those cards have now been fully withdrawn from the museum after new safety measures failed to stop the frenzy. “A small group of individuals created an undesirable situation” a statement from the museum said. (Read more)
Italy | Italian lawmakers voted unanimously on Wednesday to back a long-delayed project to build a Holocaust Museum in Rome. The project was first proposed 20 years ago but faced constant hurdles including reluctance to examine Italy’s role. The proposal was revived last spring by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s far-right-led government, and the former residence of Italy’s fascist dictator Benito Mussolini is earmarked as the venue. (Read more)
USA | The Cleveland Museum of Art has sued New York City authorities over their seizure of an ancient Roman bronze statue which investigators think was looted from Turkey. The suit claims authorities had no legal right to seize it. They’re asking a judge to declare that the museum as the rightful owner, which it calls “one of the most significant works in the (museum’s) collection” of some 61,000 objects. (Read more)
Best of the rest
Merriman moves | Nick Merriman is departing the Horniman Museum after five years to become CEO of English Heritage, who look after sites including Stonehenge. He said he was “looking forward to introducing more people” to their landmarks. (More)
Exhibition ‘drop in’ | London’s coolest new skate ramp is in... a museum. The Design Museum to be precise. Visitors to their new SKATEBOARD exhibition are being invited to skate on a bespoke mini-ramp actually inside the gallery. (More)
Storm closure | The V&A Dundee has been forced to remain shut today due to the lethal Storm Babet currently battering eastern Scotland. It closed early yesterday and won’t reopen until tomorrow at the earliest. (More)
Laying the foundations | Significant progress for the much-delayed new home for the Museum of London. Construction works have begun at the Smithfield site, and the foundation stone has been unveiled. It’ll be complete in 2028. (More)
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