July 18, 2001
CONTENTS:
- CCTV and Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act
- Burrell's stolen tapestry found in litter bin
- Nazi treasure hunt at Australian gallery
From: David_Tremain@pch.gc.ca
Subject: CCTV and Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act
I just read this article in the 'Ottawa Citizen' today (July 17,2001) which subscribers, particularly in Canada, should know about as it may have serious implications for museum security if challenged. The article refers to PIPED - Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act - which allows for individuals being surveilled by CCTV to request that the cameras be turned off because it infringes their personal freedoms. This means, according to the article, that if you are in a store or bank, for example, and know you are being filmed, you can request that the cameras be turned off, and the store owner or bank manager must comply. I have not seen a copy of the Act, but if, as the article implies, this has broader ramifications for the workplace environment, then it could also impact on cultural institutions who rely on CCTV to monitor visitors both in the exhibition areas and in museum shops. I don't know whether under the European Human Rights Code the same request could be made of European museums, but I would be interested to know from Canadian museum security staff how they feel about this. The full article can be accessed at: http://www.ottawacitizen.com/national/010717/5007180.html References to the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act can be found at:
http://www.privcom.gc.ca/legislation/02_06_01_e.asp
http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/P-8.6/
http://redesign.pwcglobal.com/extweb/manissue.nsf/DocID/A66DEF4671FF9B0285256A0800620ECE
http://www.gigalaw.com/articles/2001/krause-2001-02-p1.html
David Tremain
Conservator, Preventive Conservation Services
Canadian Conservation Institute
Ottawa
david_tremain@pch.gc.ca
Burrell's stolen tapestry found in litter bin
IAIN WILSON
A MEDIEVAL tapestry stolen four months ago from the Burrell Collection in Glasgow has been recovered from a litter bin.
The £40,000 Rhineland work was rolled up inside a black refuse-style bag. It is damp and shows earlier signs of being folded.
However, damage is said to be minimal and museum conservators predict it will be put back on display.
The German tapestry, dated from around 1475-1500 and titled The Buzzard, was rescued from a bin at a bus shelter outside the former Will's cigarette factory in the city's Alexandra Parade. Its recovery followed an anonymous tip-off to police in Cumbria, who passed the information to Glasgow detectives still trying to trace the thief. The circumstances are similar to those seven years ago when Blue Flax, a £100,000 oil painting by Edward Hornel, was recovered from a telephone box - also in the east end. It had "walked" from the city chambers and was recovered only after a telephone call to police. It is believed the latest culprit was an opportunist rather than a professional art thief, who failed to sell the distinctive 2ft by 2ft 6in tapestry after a nationwide alert to dealers and the public. The unframed wool, silk, linen, and metal-threaded tapestry was removed in broad daylight from the Burrell on March 13, which led to criticisms of security. Although described as of great value to Glasgow and its people, The Buzzard was not pinned but stuck to a wall by so-called "specialist Velcro". It hung in an unattended room without alarms or CCTV cameras, subject only to occasional checks by 11 security guards on patrol at any one time. Other rare tapestries were subsequently removed from the same room to prevent more audacious "Velcro robberies". Mark O'Neill, head of Glasgow museums service, last night confirmed £400,000 is now being spent on security across the galleries and museum service. He said: "We are accountable, and therefore the criticism was acceptable. Security is being upgraded under a best value review." Harriot Woolmore, a conservator, said initial inspections of the tapestry reveal it had been folded, is now creased, and the modern linen backing is "coming away". Her work will now focus on fears that the material could have absorbed pollutants in its absence which will weaken the fibres. Although damp, heat will not be applied to remove creases in case the threads become brittle. Despite its title, no bird is in the tapestry - one of a series of scenes illustrating a German poem and dispersed worldwide. The Glasgow-held section shows three figures entwined with banners and flowers including an English prince holding a ring which he has pulled off the finger of a French princess. It also includes a German inscription calling for God to help in the search, and the buzzard is seen snatching the ring away. The piece was bought in 1938 by Sir William Burrell, who used his family's shipbuilding fortune to build up the huge collection, gifted to Glasgow in 1944. It was among exhibits at the 1983 opening of the Burrell Collection in Pollok Park, which now attracts 285,000 visitors a year.
http://www.theherald.co.uk/
Nazi treasure hunt at gallery
By RICK WALLACE
18jul01
ART work looted by the Nazis is likely to be hanging in the National Gallery of Australia, according to its director. Gallery chief Brian Kennedy has revealed the NGA will release a list of about 24 works with suspicious backgrounds. And the gallery has flown out a British expert on arts plundered during World War II to help it assess the works in its Canberra collection. Dr Kennedy said the works in the spotlight would be worth millions, but he was unwilling to disclose the list. The director said research had found 24 works that passed through dealers who were suspected of trading with Nazis. He said it was likely some could be among the thousands of artworks taken from Jewish families during the war, though there was no proof. "It's likely there's something, given the scale of it," he told the Herald Sun. "I am open to the possibility – it would not surprise me. The scale of the spoliation was so large most museums probably have something." Other major galleries, led by the National Gallery of Victoria, are examining their collections for looted work. It is estimated the Nazis snatched more than a fifth of the world's Western art during Hitler's dictatorship. Almost 100 works in Australia have suspicious wartime gaps in their ownership records and are being studied by the galleries that own them. The growing concern stems from the discovery in the Queensland Art Gallery of a painting stolen by the Nazis and earmarked for Hitler's private museum. The priceless oil painting Virgin and Child, by an artist known as the Master of Frankfurt, was snatched from a Jewish family in 1939. It can legitimately stay in Australia because it was bought many years later after being returned to its rightful owners. The National Gallery of Victoria is checking the background of 24 works in its collection. The NGV has listed the paintings with gaps in their ownership histories on its website, but director Dr Gerard Vaughan believes none of them will turn out to be stolen. "If anyone has a valid claim and comes forward, we will work with them in pursuing those processes," he said.
http://news.com.au/common/