ArtWatch International is a non-profit 501(c)3 incorporated in the state of New York in 1992 as an international advocate for the voice of art in the conservation and stewardship of historically significant works. It was founded by Columbia University art historian Professor James Beck to serve as a watchdog organization in the arena of cultural policy, protecting works of art and the public interest from vested private and institutional interests. We operate on a project by project basis, establishing task forces to determine the levels and methods of engagement in specific conservation, restoration and cultural policy issues and problems. Some problems have been addressed through scholarly work and publications, other through advisory and consulting arrangements, still others by symposia, debate, lecture forums, and intensive work with the media.
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Art and Advertising
Patrons of restoration and expansion projects at museums and churches are now taking full advantage of the benefits of sponsorship, turning important cultural and religious centers into commercial billboards for over-sized advertisements. And the benefits are large. Hewlett Packard’s campaign on temporary construction walls at the London National Gallery occurred in 2004, when attendance levels were at 5 […]
The European University in Florence
Piero Pierotti The European University in Florence, which occupies several buildings in Fiesole, including the Badia Fiesolana, has decided to construct additional housing in the surrounding area, land which has traditionally been protected. From what has so far appeared in the press, the Comune of Florence appears willing to grant permission. Firenze, 20 giugno 2006 […]
Andrea Mantegna at the Hermitage
Piero Pierotti To coincide with the G8 Summit, the Hermitage Museum has planned a series of exhibitions, including one in honor of the 500th anniversary of the death of Andrea Mantegna. For this exhibition, the city of Mantua will loan two paintings to the museum. ArtWatch Italia has criticized this practice of using works of […]
Louvre Atlanta, 2006-2009
The phenomenon of the traveling exhibition has always been a powerful tool, used by museums to boost attendance rates and bring works of art to a population that otherwise might not get the chance to see them. But at what cost? ArtWatch has raised the issue of the danger of transporting works in the past, […]
Reproductive Rights?
ArtWatch has previously reported on the way in which museums exert their power to suppress discussions in public forums that do not favor their actions or points of view. Shortly after reporting on the MoMA’s possession of an Egon Schiele painting claimed to have been looted by Nazis during WWII in December of 2004, David […]
Pentimento
Several times in recent memory, the restoration of an artwork has led to the re-attribution of a painting, or at the very least, the shift in attribution from a workshop piece to one executed directly by the master. Rembrandt and Titian are the authors of two major works “uncovered” during recent cleaning campaigns. The discovery […]
Has the Met Been Rewarded for Looting Antiquities?
The Metropolitan Museum website may now indicate that the famous 2500-year-old Euphronios krater is “Lent by the Republic of Italy,” but that has hardly been the case since the acquisition of the object thirty years ago. Shortly after the Met acquired the krater, Italy claimed that the work had been stolen from a tomb in Cerveteri. […]
A Manifesto to Save Leonardo
SALVIAMO LEONARDO! MANIFESTO ETICOADARTE, 2005 Salvatemi per mirabile necessità (Leonardo, Codice Atlantico) Save me out of admirable necessity (Leonardo, Codex Atlanticus) Salvatemi dai barattieri e dai pomposi trombetti (Codice Atlantico) Save me from tricksters and pompous trumpeteers (Codex Atlanticus) Salvatemi dalle sette di ipocriti (Trattato della pittura) Save me from the clans of hypocrites (Treatise […]
Art Restoration and Advertising
A new advertising campaign was announced in August, aimed at raising money to fund upcoming restoration projects. The non-profit agency Fondazione CittàItalia (founded 2003) has scheduled its second such initiative, called “The Days of Art — Fundraising Campaign for the Restoration of Italian Cultural Heritage”, set to run from 24 September to 2 October 2005. […]
Making-over Mount Rushmore
Beginning on the 4th of July, the famed sculptural monument of Mount Rushmore in South Dakota was cleaned in a matter of weeks, hailed by the press as a “facelift”. Yet is was far more than a cleaning, it was a… pressure washing. Featuring the 60-foot high likenesses of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and […]