Tom,
I saw your message on the Museum Security Network concerning skate boarders. We have also had problems up here at UBC with skate boarders. I found some innovative solutions down at Coal Harbour and have documented them at this web site: http://www.belkin-gallery.ubc.ca/skate/
We are in the process of having some of the metal clips installed here at the gallery but until we do I won't know exactly how effective they will be.
Good luck -- Owen Sopotiuk Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA 1825 Main Mall, Vancouver, BC., Canada, V6T 1Z2
From: "Ken Vail" Kenmtb1@email.msn.com
Subject: Re: Skateboarders
Date sent: Thu, 25 Apr 2002 22:50:51 -0400
----- Original Message ----- From: "Museum Security Network" securma@xs4all.nl
Answer to query: security issue outside museum (Tom Meighan) *** I would discourage the use of speedbumps...the bikers & boarders will just use them for jumps, & they have the unintended consequence of becoming serious pedestrian hazards if improperly installed, marked, & maintained. They're just not worth the effort for what you intend to accomplish.
Perhaps a limited-coverage exterior pan/tilt dome mounted CCTV system, combined with a cooperative/aggressive Police patrol, with appropriate exterior signage, and a facility policy of prosecuting deserving trespass violators will make a positive difference.
Best wishes, Ken Vail Risk Management Consultant
From: Francois Roelants du Vivier Francois
Subject: parthenon
Dear Sirs,
I have discovered with great interest your website. I am working, as you have quoted, to get belgium sign the 1970 UNESCO Convention.It is yet not done. I will keep you informed.
An other story is the campaign Parthenon 2004 that I have launched in march with my colleague Senator Paul Wille, and concerns the return of the Elgin marbles to Greece. The campaign is linked with my British colleague Richard Allan, a former archaeologist, as myself. We have gathered so far 150 signatures from members of parliament in Belgium. The site of the campaign (in french and dutch) is the following: http://www.synec-doc.be/parthenon/
April 27, 2002 By CELESTINE BOHLEN
The chief judge of the Federal District Court in Manhattan has revived a much-disputed case involving art looted by the Nazis, opening the way for court proceedings to determine the ownership of "Portrait of Wally," a 1912 painting by the Austrian painter Egon Schiele. The work was seized in 1998 while on loan for an exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art. In an opinion issued two weeks ago, Judge Michael B. Mukasey ruled that the painting, which had come to New York from a private Austrian museum, was stolen property and that a trial should be held to determine which of two competing claimants is the rightful owner. The case has been seen as a sign of a new determination in the United States and elsewhere to address the wrongs committed by the Nazis when they expropriated art and other property from European Jews before and during World War II, and, when possible, to bring about restitution. But it has also stirred controversy, particularly among museum directors and others involved in the art business who believe that the "Wally" case is essentially an ownership dispute that never warranted intervention by prosecutors. They also argue that this case - now in its fourth year - is making foreign museums and collectors wary of lending artworks to American institutions.
To experts who closely follow the history of Nazi-looted art, the wrangling over the "Wally" painting - with its slow pace and high profile - is an example of how not to resolve such disputes. They note that in recent years, a number of similar cases have been resolved more quietly, without judicial proceedings. "I believe it is a pity, because of all the time, energy and money wasted on this, by all sides," said Hector Feliciano, author of "The Lost Museum: The Nazi Conspiracy to Steal the World's Greatest Works of Art." "It should be solved in a quicker manner." The history of "Wally," a mournful portrait Mr. Schiele painted of his mistress, is long and twisted, matched in complexity by the case itself. The painting was taken in 1938 from the Vienna apartment of Lea Bondi Jaray, a Jewish gallery owner, by an Austrian Nazi who had already "Aryanized" her art gallery. After the war, "Wally" was handed over to the Belvedere, the Austrian National Gallery, after being mistakenly identified as part of another art collection that had also been confiscated by the Nazis. From there, it was acquired in 1954 by Dr. Rudolf Leopold, a passionate collector of Schiele's works, who gave the Belvedere another Schiele painting in exchange. Ms. Bondi, who in 1949 recovered her other stolen artworks through the Austrian Restitution Commission, claimed that Dr. Leopold knew that the painting belonged to her, and had even agreed in 1953 to help her get it back.
The main issue before Judge Mukasey was whether the painting was still stolen property. In an earlier opinion, filed in July, he had ruled that it could no longer be considered stolen, since it had been recovered after the war by the United States armed forces. But in his second opinion, issued on April 11, Judge Mukasey reversed himself and found that the United States armed forces had neither the responsibility nor the duty to restitute looted works of art, only to retrieve them. Now the case moves to the forfeiture process, in which the two claimants - the about 40 heirs of Lea Bondi, who died in 1969, and the Leopold Foundation, which holds Dr. Leopold's collection - make their claims before Judge Mukasey. Most lawyers expect that process to take a year or more; during that time the painting will remain out of view, in the custody of the Modern. The judge's ruling was a relief to Bondi's heirs, who now see an end to the decadeslong fight to retrieve the painting. "The family is very gratified," said Howard N. Spiegler, their lawyer. "Wally" arrived in the United States in 1997 as part of an exhibition of Schiele paintings lent to the Modern by the Leopold Foundation. Soon after the show closed and just before the paintings were to be returned to Austria, Manhattan District Attorney Robert M. Morgenthau issued a grand jury subpoena, effectively blocking the painting from leaving the country, because of the claim by the Bondi heirs. Mr. Morgenthau's subpoena was later invalidated by an order of the New York State Court of Appeals, which found the painting came under New York's 1968 Arts and Cultural Affairs Law, which prevents the seizure of works of art by the state. Soon after, the office of Mary Jo White, then the United States attorney in Manhattan, brought its own case, which claimed the painting had been illegally imported under the National Stolen Property Act.
The Modern has joined the Leopold Foundation against the federal government, arguing that its obligation was to return the work to the institution that had lent it. But the Modern is also concerned about the chilling effect the case is having on loans from foreign museums and collectors. "It is always difficult to persuade individuals and institutions to lend art, and this is just another factor that will discourage them" said Stephen W. Clark, associate general counsel for the Modern. "No one is going to say they are not going to lend because we have overreaching, overzealous prosecutors," he said. "They are just going to say the works are not available." Other American museums have filed friend-of-the-court briefs, arguing that it should be treated as a civil dispute between the Bondi family and the Leopold Foundation and not as a matter for the government's time or money. http://www.nytimes.com/
'Exquisite' auction raises questions
Kin of organizer of Lehigh Valley event investigated in Oregon.
By Tom Coombe Of The Morning Call
April 27, 2002 For antiques lovers and patrons of the arts, the ad that ran in local newspapers Thursday and Friday might have seemed like an invitation to paradise. Today and Sunday at 1 p.m., Park Royal Auctions of Sterling, Va., says it will sell off ''an exquisite and diverse'' collection of furniture, paintings, jewelry and rugs, including an ''original Picasso,'' Persian carpets, ''certified loose diamonds,'' and works by Manet, Matisse, Rembrandt and Chagall. The auction — scheduled at the Saddle Valley Farm Estate on Good Road in Lower Mount Bethel Township — is being held because of the divorce of the ''prominent attorney at law, Stacy Michaels,'' according to the advertisement. While there may be many people out there named Stacy Michaels, no attorney named Stacy Michaels seems to exist.
The auction in Lower Mount Bethel is being run by Azam Khan, whose family has been investigated by the Oregon attorney general's office for deceptive business practices at auctions. ''The m.o. [method of operation] is always the same,'' said Jan Margosian, spokeswoman for the Oregon attorney general. For the past 10 years, that office has been been engaged in a legal war with the Khan brothers — Anwar, Salim and Babur — who have been fined or faced court action for alleged deceptive business practices. Last year, the Oregon attorney general obtained a permanent injunction against Anwar Khan, forbidding him from posting misleading ads. He paid a $2,500 fine and must submit all future ads to the state Department of Justice for review. ''If he operates in the state again, he's going to jail,'' Margosian said. The office had filed similar actions against Salim Khan in 1991 and Babur Khan in 1995, but the state did not fine them. The man running this weekend's auction, Azam Khan, is related to the brothers, Margosian said, adding she wasn't sure of the exact connection.
Margosian said the three brothers have been using the same practice for years. They advertise an auction at a large estate or mansion, and customers assume the items on sale are more expensive than they really are, she said. ''It's the same stuff they've been dragging around for years,'' Margosian said. Her office has received complaints from people who paid 10 times what they should have for artwork and antiques. ''The complaints were that the ads were misleading, and the quality … some of the stuff looked like it was really old,'' she said. Other times, the state has stopped some of the auctions before they started. Pennsylvania Attorney General Mike Fisher's office on Friday said it would not comment on the auction because no complaints had been filed. Patricia Madrid, the attorney general in New Mexico, issued a warning last Saturday after officials came across a notice Anwar Khan had posted advertising a sale in Albuquerque. Sam Johnson, a spokeswoman for Madrid's office, said she called Khan and learned the merchandise was actually coming from his company's warehouse. ''The ad appears to be misleading,'' Johnson said. ''It appears to be an estate sale.'' Both Anwar Khan and Azam Khan have received Pennsylvania auctioneer licenses, although Anwar's has expired, according to the Department of State Web site. The site lists both men as living in Sterling, Va. Neither man could be reached for comment.
The ad for the Lower Mount Bethel auction says ''Due to Divorce, the prominent attorney at law Stacy Michaels liquidating antiques, home furnishings, and jewelry.'' Underneath, it shows a photo of Saddle Valley, which is on sale for $2.9 million but is not part of the auction. According to the San Antonio Express-News, Anwar Khan advertised a sale in Kerrville, Texas, earlier this month, selling furniture and paintings from the estate of the ''prominent attorney Stacy Michaels.'' A search through the Web site of Martindale-Hubbell, a worldwide directory of lawyers, found no attorney named Stacy Michaels. Similar searches through other sites also found no mention of Michaels. John Monaghan, the Realtor and owner of Saddle Valley, said Azam Khan contacted him last month with a proposal: Khan would hold the auction on the farm and pay all costs associated with it, and Monaghan would get a chance to show off his property. ''I'm making the assumption that the [customers] will have some money,'' he said. Monaghan said he didn't investigate Azam Khan's background. ''Everything they've done, they've been very responsive,'' he said. ''My concern is that they do what they promised to do.'' tom.coombe@mcall.com http://www.mcall.com/ Forbes Magazine
Killing the golden Gauguin
By Richard Heller
Protectionist? Europe's taxing authorities are putting their own art markets at a disadvantage.
Europe is losing ground in a field where most people think it preeminent: the sale of fine and decorative art. So finds a study conducted by Kusin & Co., of Dallas, Texas (www.kusin.com). David Kusin, the company's ceo and founder, has built a thorough and wide-ranging economic research organization in the fine and decorative arts. more The Art Newspaper.com
This week's top stories:
TIME IS RUNNING OUT FOR GOTHIC REVIVAL MASTERPIECE
LONDON. The National Trust is battling to save Tyntesfield, arguably Britain’s greatest Victorian country house. Set in rolling countryside seven miles south-west of Bristol, this Gothic Revival extravaganza is a “secret” treasure which has been virtually inaccessible to outsiders for a century. http://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=9376
MET TO SELL MONET
NEW YORK. -The Metropolitan Museum is selling a Monet, following settlement of a World War II claim on the painting. Sotheby’s is to auction “Le repos dans le jardin, Argenteuil” in New York on 8 May, with an estimate of $3.5-4.5 million. http://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=9375
SOTHEBY’S OWNER GETS PRISON SENTENCE
NEW YORK. A Manhattan court has sentenced Sotheby’s owner and former chairman, Alfred Taubman, to one year and one day in prison and a fine of $7.5 million for colluding with Christie’s to fix vendors’ premiums. http://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=9374
UK EXPORT REVIEWING COMMITTEE: THE SYSTEM IS CREAKING
LONDON. The 2000-2001 report of the UK Export Reviewing Committee reveals that national museums only succeeded in buying one of the more expensive artworks for which an export licence had been deferred. The Art Newspaper highlights works of art which can still be saved for national collections in the UK. http://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=9373
HIGH POLITICAL TENSION BEHIND THE SCENES AT THE VENICE BIENNALE
VENICE. Young, brilliant and famous for having been the managing director of the consortium of Italian oil companies, Franco Bernabè has been the president of the Venice Biennale for a few weeks now, putting paid to the strife and dissension rife in Italy’s most prominent contemporary art institution. http://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=9372
A MYSTICAL MOUNT RUSHMORE?
CALATAFIMI, SICILY. The mayor of the Sicilian town of Calatafimi, Nicola Cristaldi, is hoping to create a version of Mount Rushmore in western Sicily with Mother Teresa, Pope John Paul II, and the recently beatified priest Padre Pio standing in for Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt. http://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=9371
ESCALATOR FOR ANGKOR WAT?
PHNOM PENH. “Development” collides with preservation yet again, this time in the temple complex of Angkor Wat, Cambodia, which is to be enhanced with such touristic details as a 10- storey yellow sightseeing balloon, a laser and light show, a scheme to provide visitors with rubber overshoes to better scale the temples, and an escalator up Phom Bakheng temple mountain. http://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=9370