m***@yahoo.com
2006-11-14 13:16:15 UTC
I 52 reperti acquisiti in modo illegale. Il museo di Los Angeles:
Roma ci ripensi Il Getty non restituisce le opere
Rutelli: «Embargo culturale» «È finito il tempo delle trattative».
Per il ministro dei Beni Culturali, Francesco Rutelli, il tempo per
una contrattazione amichevole con il Getty Museum «è scaduto». Tanto
che non si esclude l'adozione di quello che i giornali americani e
inglesi hanno definito un «embargo artistico-culturale» nei confronti
del Getty Museum di Los Angeles da parte dell'Italia se non
restituirà i 52 capolavori ritenuti trafugati (su questo è in corso
anche un processo a Roma contro la precedente curatrice del Getty,
Marion True) tra cui la celebre Venere di Morgantina e l'Atleta di
Fano attribuito a Lisippo.
Che siamo di fronte a un complesso caso internazionale lo dimostra la
frequenza degli articoli sul caso Getty-Italia apparsi negli ultimi
giorni: il 9 novembre se ne è occupato il New York Times, l'altro
ieri il Los Angeles Times e ieri il Times di Londra. E le
affermazioni di Rutelli contenute negli articoli sono in linea con
quanto già affermato venerdì scorso al convegno organizzato a Roma
dal Fai, quando aveva detto, senza fare nomi, «mi chiedo come
facciano a non vergognarsi alcuni grandi musei a continuare ad
esporre opere rubate».
«Ho cercato negli ultimi sei mesi di spiegare la situazione in modo
amichevole alle persone responsabili del Getty- ha affermato il
ministro - ma se loro non hanno ancora compreso, temo che la
procedura conciliatoria terminerà e inizierà un contenzioso vero e
proprio». Secondo un altro funzionario italiano intervistato dal Los
Angeles Times, il paventato embargo significherebbe «nessuna
esibizione, nessuno studio, nessuna iniziativa culturale per il
Getty, che rimarrebbe escluso da qualsiasi iniziativa in Italia ».
Alle parole del vicepremier e del funzionario hanno fatto eco anche
quelle del direttore per i Beni culturali, Giuseppe Proietti: «Basta!
Non è stato compiuto un singolo passo in avanti. Non accetteremo
soluzioni parziali. Suggerirò al governo di adottare iniziative
sanzionatorie di carattere culturale contro il Getty». Un'iniziativa
unica nel suo genere, pur avendo un effetto più simbolico che reale,
poiché l'Italia presta poche opere all'estero.
Sebbene l'Italia abbia recentemente raggiunto con alcuni importanti
musei americani, come il Metropolitan Museum di New York e il Museum
of Art di Boston, significativi accordi per ottenere la restituzione
di opere d'arte trafugate, il Getty Museum, per ora, ha restituito
solo 26 pezzi dei 52 contestati. E anche per questo motivo a carico
della precedente curatrice del Getty, Marion True, pende un processo
-
di alte conseguenze per il tema delle restituzioni delle opere
d'arte - per l'accusa di aver acquistato illegalmente opere
provenienti dal suolo italiano. Venerdì scorso, durante il processo,
il Getty ancora una volta ha scelto di non fornire informazioni sulle
origini della Venere di Morgantina, acquistata in circostanze non
chiare per 18 milioni di dollari nel 1988 dal mediatore Robin Symes,
che l'aveva acquistata da Renzo Canavesi, un siciliano abitante in
Svizzera che aveva dichiarato di possederla dal 1939.
Gli avvocati del Getty, che continuano a difendere l'ex curatrice
delle antichità, la True - anche se questa è stata costretta alle
dimissioni nell'ottobre 2005 per il sospetto di provenienze illegali
e anche per il discusso acquisto di una proprietà in Grecia con soldi
di un «trafficante» d'arte - dicono che le prove sono insufficienti
per determinare esattamente la provenienza della Venere. Secondo
alcuni commentatori, Ron Hartwig, il portavoce del Getty, non avrebbe
realmente mai svelato ciò che la recente investigazione della
fondazione ha scoperto sulla Venere. «Continuiamo a cercare prove
certe - si è limitato a dire -. Ci sono molte informazioni che
devono
essere attentamente guardate e decifrate».
Ieri Rutelli era a Bruxelles per un incontro con i ministri della
Cultura degli altri Paesi europei e non ha ulteriormente commentato.
Il Getty, invece, spera da parte sua in un ammorbidimento della
posizione italiana. «Spero che la saggezza e la ragione prevarranno e
i due contendenti, Italia e Getty, troveranno un accordo », ha detto
Hartwig. Le autorità italiane aggiungono però che il negoziatore del
Getty, Ron Olson della Los Angeles Munger Tolles & Olson, ha
considerato le negoziazioni solo come un affare «commerciale»,
preoccupato di come la restituzione delle opere influenzerebbe i
conti della fondazione. Quanto al nuovo direttore del Getty, Michael
Brand, avrebbe partecipato sporadicamente ai negoziati.
Pierluigi Panza
14 novembre 2006
http://www.corriere.it/Primo_Piano/Cronache/2006/11_Novembre/14/panza.shtml
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-
getty11nov11,0,7970231,full.story?coll=la-home-local
Getty risks 'embargo,' Italy warns
Officials in Rome threaten to suspend "all cultural cooperation" with
the museum as talks on the return of antiquities stall.
By Jason Felch and Ralph Frammolino
Times Staff Writers
November 11, 2006
ROME - Frustrated by the J. Paul Getty Trust's refusal to return a
prized statue of Aphrodite and a score of other antiquities, Italian
officials are threatening to impose an unprecedented "cultural
embargo" on the Los Angeles museum that would prevent its borrowing
any artwork from or conducting research in their country.
The impasse in talks came as new evidence was submitted Friday in the
criminal trial of the Getty's former antiquities curator that the
museum chose not to pursue information about the Aphrodite statue's
origins when presented with an opportunity a decade ago.
Marion True told prosecutors in a statement entered into evidence
that in 1996 the statue's former owner provided the Getty with photos
of the 7 1/2 -foot depiction of the goddess and offered several
fragments still in his possession.
But True said she was "highly skeptical" of the man's motives and
decided it was "inappropriate" to accept his invitation to meet in
Switzerland, according to a copy of the statement obtained by The
Times.
That decision looms large today for both True and the Getty, because
the marble and limestone figure has come to play the starring role in
the dispute between Italy and the trust.
To Italian authorities, the statue symbolizes what they see as the
museum's brazen exploitation of the illicit trade in ancient art.
Getty officials say there is insufficient evidence to determine
exactly where the statue comes from, and they have so far refused to
return it.
Four months ago both sides announced an agreement in principle for
the museum to return "a number of very significant" artworks in
exchange for loans from Italy.
Since then, the Getty has quietly offered 26 objects, including
masterpieces such as a marble statue of Apollo and a sculpture of
mythical griffins devouring a fallen deer. Italy, in turn, agreed to
withdraw its claim for six objects that it conceded may have been
found outside its borders.
But deciding the fate of the 21 remaining disputed objects, dominated
by the Aphrodite and a bronze statue of a young athlete, has proved
difficult.
"Basta!" said Giuseppe Proietti, a senior cultural official, in a
recent interview, using the Italian word for "enough."
"The negotiations haven't made a single step forward," he said. "We
will not accept partial solutions. I will suggest the Italian
government take cultural sanctions against the Getty, suspending all
cultural cooperation."
Francesco Rutelli, Italy's minister of culture and vice president,
was awaiting the latest response from the Getty before deciding
whether to go ahead with an embargo, but he warned Friday that time
was running out.
"I tried to explain it amicably to the people responsible for the
Getty for the last six months," Rutelli said in a statement to The
Times. "If they still haven't understood it, I'm afraid the process
of conciliation will end and a serious conflict will begin."
According to another Italian official familiar with the Getty
negotiations, the embargo would mean "no excavations, no exhibitions,
no cultural studies.... The Getty is out of order in Italy."
Several museum experts said such an embargo would have symbolic
effect but might otherwise be limited because Italy has not been
generous with loans in the past.
"It's a fight for world opinion," said Ruth Weisberg, dean of the USC
Roski School of Fine Arts. "It's certainly an attempt to embarrass
and isolate the Getty."
Getty officials acknowledged the impasse but said they were still
hopeful an agreement could be reached soon.
"My sense is that wisdom and reason will reign here, and the two
sides, Italy and the Getty, will find a way to get past whatever
problems exist in the short term," said Getty spokesman Ron Hartwig,
adding that the museum continues to evaluate information about the
Aphrodite statue.
Since talks started with the Getty in January, Italy has forged
cultural agreements with New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art and
Boston's Museum of Fine Art, which both agreed to return objects in
exchange for loans of antiquities from Italy.
The Getty's negotiations are complicated by the criminal case against
True, who is accused of conspiring to traffic in looted art. Although
she was forced to resign last year for unrelated reasons, the Getty
continues to pay for her defense, and museum officials have been
worried that giving back objects might further implicate the former
curator.
In addition to the dispute over the Aphrodite statue, Italian
authorities cite several causes for the recent breakdown in talks.
Unlike the other museums, the Getty has sent attorneys to negotiate
rather than its museum director, Michael Brand, who has participated
sporadically, Italian officials say.
"With the Boston MFA and the Met, our counterparts were the
directors," said Proietti. "With the Getty, it is lawyers. This is an
obstacle to realizing a cultural agreement."
Italian authorities also say the Getty's negotiator, Ron Olson of the
Los Angeles firm Munger Tolles & Olson, has approached the
negotiations as a "commercial" deal, concerned more about how giving
back valuable artwork would affect the inventory of the $5.5-billion
trust than about cultural issues.
For example, they say, Olson has stressed repeatedly that if the
Getty returned all the disputed objects it might trigger an
investigation by the California attorney general into whether the
trust's board was adequately safeguarding the nonprofit's assets.
A spokesman for Atty. Gen. Bill Lockyer, whose office regulates
nonprofits in California, said, however, that any potential
investigation would focus on whether the Getty board was negligent in
purchasing the antiquities in the first place - not on whether any or
all of the art should be given back.
Italian cultural officials were also offended by Olson's inclusion of
the U.S. ambassador in a recent round of talks, something they
interpreted as a clear attempt to politicize the cultural
negotiations.
Olson would not comment on the negotiations.
Records show that his firm has hired private investigators to
investigate the origin of the Aphrodite, something the museum chose
not to do in 1996, according to True's statement.
True said Harold Williams, then-chief executive of the trust,
received a letter from a Swiss man who claimed to be the previous
owner of the statue. The letter included several photos of the
figure, including one of its marble head.
According to the statement, Williams passed the letter to then-museum
Director John Walsh, who forwarded it to True with a note, "What do
you make of this?"
"We both agreed it was strange and suspicious," True said in the
statement.
True wrote that she was able to confirm with the dealer who had sold
the statue to the Getty that Renzo Canavesi was indeed the former
owner, but declined the man's invitation to meet in Switzerland
because she was "highly suspicious about his motives" and did
not "deem it appropriate" to meet.
"If Canavesi provided additional information about the statue's
provenance, how was the Getty going to confirm or disprove the
information?" True wrote. "If Canavesi did know where the piece came
from, why had he not simply provided his information?"
In other cases, True has said that antiquities dealers held back
fragments of objects sold to the Getty so they could later try to
sell the missing pieces to the museum for large sums of money.
Walsh, Williams and True's attorneys did not return calls seeking
comment.
Hartwig, the Getty spokesman, would not disclose what the trust's
recent investigation had uncovered.
"We are continuing to look at certain pieces of evidence," he
said. "This is a very complex object. There is a lot of information
about it that needs to be carefully looked at and deciphered."
***@...
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-getty11nov11,0,2313496,print.story?coll=la-home-local
MABIC =
http://rassegnastampa.beniculturali.it/Rassegnanew/
14/11/2006 -
14/11/06 Corriere della Sera L'Italia e le opere trafugate: embargo
contro il Getty - Il Getty non rende le opere. Rutelli: "Embargo
culturale" Panza Pierluigi 1
14/11/06 Corriere della Sera Rutelli embargo al Getty ...
14/11/06 Repubblica Rutelli al Getty: subito le opere o embargo
Roma ci ripensi Il Getty non restituisce le opere
Rutelli: «Embargo culturale» «È finito il tempo delle trattative».
Per il ministro dei Beni Culturali, Francesco Rutelli, il tempo per
una contrattazione amichevole con il Getty Museum «è scaduto». Tanto
che non si esclude l'adozione di quello che i giornali americani e
inglesi hanno definito un «embargo artistico-culturale» nei confronti
del Getty Museum di Los Angeles da parte dell'Italia se non
restituirà i 52 capolavori ritenuti trafugati (su questo è in corso
anche un processo a Roma contro la precedente curatrice del Getty,
Marion True) tra cui la celebre Venere di Morgantina e l'Atleta di
Fano attribuito a Lisippo.
Che siamo di fronte a un complesso caso internazionale lo dimostra la
frequenza degli articoli sul caso Getty-Italia apparsi negli ultimi
giorni: il 9 novembre se ne è occupato il New York Times, l'altro
ieri il Los Angeles Times e ieri il Times di Londra. E le
affermazioni di Rutelli contenute negli articoli sono in linea con
quanto già affermato venerdì scorso al convegno organizzato a Roma
dal Fai, quando aveva detto, senza fare nomi, «mi chiedo come
facciano a non vergognarsi alcuni grandi musei a continuare ad
esporre opere rubate».
«Ho cercato negli ultimi sei mesi di spiegare la situazione in modo
amichevole alle persone responsabili del Getty- ha affermato il
ministro - ma se loro non hanno ancora compreso, temo che la
procedura conciliatoria terminerà e inizierà un contenzioso vero e
proprio». Secondo un altro funzionario italiano intervistato dal Los
Angeles Times, il paventato embargo significherebbe «nessuna
esibizione, nessuno studio, nessuna iniziativa culturale per il
Getty, che rimarrebbe escluso da qualsiasi iniziativa in Italia ».
Alle parole del vicepremier e del funzionario hanno fatto eco anche
quelle del direttore per i Beni culturali, Giuseppe Proietti: «Basta!
Non è stato compiuto un singolo passo in avanti. Non accetteremo
soluzioni parziali. Suggerirò al governo di adottare iniziative
sanzionatorie di carattere culturale contro il Getty». Un'iniziativa
unica nel suo genere, pur avendo un effetto più simbolico che reale,
poiché l'Italia presta poche opere all'estero.
Sebbene l'Italia abbia recentemente raggiunto con alcuni importanti
musei americani, come il Metropolitan Museum di New York e il Museum
of Art di Boston, significativi accordi per ottenere la restituzione
di opere d'arte trafugate, il Getty Museum, per ora, ha restituito
solo 26 pezzi dei 52 contestati. E anche per questo motivo a carico
della precedente curatrice del Getty, Marion True, pende un processo
-
di alte conseguenze per il tema delle restituzioni delle opere
d'arte - per l'accusa di aver acquistato illegalmente opere
provenienti dal suolo italiano. Venerdì scorso, durante il processo,
il Getty ancora una volta ha scelto di non fornire informazioni sulle
origini della Venere di Morgantina, acquistata in circostanze non
chiare per 18 milioni di dollari nel 1988 dal mediatore Robin Symes,
che l'aveva acquistata da Renzo Canavesi, un siciliano abitante in
Svizzera che aveva dichiarato di possederla dal 1939.
Gli avvocati del Getty, che continuano a difendere l'ex curatrice
delle antichità, la True - anche se questa è stata costretta alle
dimissioni nell'ottobre 2005 per il sospetto di provenienze illegali
e anche per il discusso acquisto di una proprietà in Grecia con soldi
di un «trafficante» d'arte - dicono che le prove sono insufficienti
per determinare esattamente la provenienza della Venere. Secondo
alcuni commentatori, Ron Hartwig, il portavoce del Getty, non avrebbe
realmente mai svelato ciò che la recente investigazione della
fondazione ha scoperto sulla Venere. «Continuiamo a cercare prove
certe - si è limitato a dire -. Ci sono molte informazioni che
devono
essere attentamente guardate e decifrate».
Ieri Rutelli era a Bruxelles per un incontro con i ministri della
Cultura degli altri Paesi europei e non ha ulteriormente commentato.
Il Getty, invece, spera da parte sua in un ammorbidimento della
posizione italiana. «Spero che la saggezza e la ragione prevarranno e
i due contendenti, Italia e Getty, troveranno un accordo », ha detto
Hartwig. Le autorità italiane aggiungono però che il negoziatore del
Getty, Ron Olson della Los Angeles Munger Tolles & Olson, ha
considerato le negoziazioni solo come un affare «commerciale»,
preoccupato di come la restituzione delle opere influenzerebbe i
conti della fondazione. Quanto al nuovo direttore del Getty, Michael
Brand, avrebbe partecipato sporadicamente ai negoziati.
Pierluigi Panza
14 novembre 2006
http://www.corriere.it/Primo_Piano/Cronache/2006/11_Novembre/14/panza.shtml
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-
getty11nov11,0,7970231,full.story?coll=la-home-local
Getty risks 'embargo,' Italy warns
Officials in Rome threaten to suspend "all cultural cooperation" with
the museum as talks on the return of antiquities stall.
By Jason Felch and Ralph Frammolino
Times Staff Writers
November 11, 2006
ROME - Frustrated by the J. Paul Getty Trust's refusal to return a
prized statue of Aphrodite and a score of other antiquities, Italian
officials are threatening to impose an unprecedented "cultural
embargo" on the Los Angeles museum that would prevent its borrowing
any artwork from or conducting research in their country.
The impasse in talks came as new evidence was submitted Friday in the
criminal trial of the Getty's former antiquities curator that the
museum chose not to pursue information about the Aphrodite statue's
origins when presented with an opportunity a decade ago.
Marion True told prosecutors in a statement entered into evidence
that in 1996 the statue's former owner provided the Getty with photos
of the 7 1/2 -foot depiction of the goddess and offered several
fragments still in his possession.
But True said she was "highly skeptical" of the man's motives and
decided it was "inappropriate" to accept his invitation to meet in
Switzerland, according to a copy of the statement obtained by The
Times.
That decision looms large today for both True and the Getty, because
the marble and limestone figure has come to play the starring role in
the dispute between Italy and the trust.
To Italian authorities, the statue symbolizes what they see as the
museum's brazen exploitation of the illicit trade in ancient art.
Getty officials say there is insufficient evidence to determine
exactly where the statue comes from, and they have so far refused to
return it.
Four months ago both sides announced an agreement in principle for
the museum to return "a number of very significant" artworks in
exchange for loans from Italy.
Since then, the Getty has quietly offered 26 objects, including
masterpieces such as a marble statue of Apollo and a sculpture of
mythical griffins devouring a fallen deer. Italy, in turn, agreed to
withdraw its claim for six objects that it conceded may have been
found outside its borders.
But deciding the fate of the 21 remaining disputed objects, dominated
by the Aphrodite and a bronze statue of a young athlete, has proved
difficult.
"Basta!" said Giuseppe Proietti, a senior cultural official, in a
recent interview, using the Italian word for "enough."
"The negotiations haven't made a single step forward," he said. "We
will not accept partial solutions. I will suggest the Italian
government take cultural sanctions against the Getty, suspending all
cultural cooperation."
Francesco Rutelli, Italy's minister of culture and vice president,
was awaiting the latest response from the Getty before deciding
whether to go ahead with an embargo, but he warned Friday that time
was running out.
"I tried to explain it amicably to the people responsible for the
Getty for the last six months," Rutelli said in a statement to The
Times. "If they still haven't understood it, I'm afraid the process
of conciliation will end and a serious conflict will begin."
According to another Italian official familiar with the Getty
negotiations, the embargo would mean "no excavations, no exhibitions,
no cultural studies.... The Getty is out of order in Italy."
Several museum experts said such an embargo would have symbolic
effect but might otherwise be limited because Italy has not been
generous with loans in the past.
"It's a fight for world opinion," said Ruth Weisberg, dean of the USC
Roski School of Fine Arts. "It's certainly an attempt to embarrass
and isolate the Getty."
Getty officials acknowledged the impasse but said they were still
hopeful an agreement could be reached soon.
"My sense is that wisdom and reason will reign here, and the two
sides, Italy and the Getty, will find a way to get past whatever
problems exist in the short term," said Getty spokesman Ron Hartwig,
adding that the museum continues to evaluate information about the
Aphrodite statue.
Since talks started with the Getty in January, Italy has forged
cultural agreements with New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art and
Boston's Museum of Fine Art, which both agreed to return objects in
exchange for loans of antiquities from Italy.
The Getty's negotiations are complicated by the criminal case against
True, who is accused of conspiring to traffic in looted art. Although
she was forced to resign last year for unrelated reasons, the Getty
continues to pay for her defense, and museum officials have been
worried that giving back objects might further implicate the former
curator.
In addition to the dispute over the Aphrodite statue, Italian
authorities cite several causes for the recent breakdown in talks.
Unlike the other museums, the Getty has sent attorneys to negotiate
rather than its museum director, Michael Brand, who has participated
sporadically, Italian officials say.
"With the Boston MFA and the Met, our counterparts were the
directors," said Proietti. "With the Getty, it is lawyers. This is an
obstacle to realizing a cultural agreement."
Italian authorities also say the Getty's negotiator, Ron Olson of the
Los Angeles firm Munger Tolles & Olson, has approached the
negotiations as a "commercial" deal, concerned more about how giving
back valuable artwork would affect the inventory of the $5.5-billion
trust than about cultural issues.
For example, they say, Olson has stressed repeatedly that if the
Getty returned all the disputed objects it might trigger an
investigation by the California attorney general into whether the
trust's board was adequately safeguarding the nonprofit's assets.
A spokesman for Atty. Gen. Bill Lockyer, whose office regulates
nonprofits in California, said, however, that any potential
investigation would focus on whether the Getty board was negligent in
purchasing the antiquities in the first place - not on whether any or
all of the art should be given back.
Italian cultural officials were also offended by Olson's inclusion of
the U.S. ambassador in a recent round of talks, something they
interpreted as a clear attempt to politicize the cultural
negotiations.
Olson would not comment on the negotiations.
Records show that his firm has hired private investigators to
investigate the origin of the Aphrodite, something the museum chose
not to do in 1996, according to True's statement.
True said Harold Williams, then-chief executive of the trust,
received a letter from a Swiss man who claimed to be the previous
owner of the statue. The letter included several photos of the
figure, including one of its marble head.
According to the statement, Williams passed the letter to then-museum
Director John Walsh, who forwarded it to True with a note, "What do
you make of this?"
"We both agreed it was strange and suspicious," True said in the
statement.
True wrote that she was able to confirm with the dealer who had sold
the statue to the Getty that Renzo Canavesi was indeed the former
owner, but declined the man's invitation to meet in Switzerland
because she was "highly suspicious about his motives" and did
not "deem it appropriate" to meet.
"If Canavesi provided additional information about the statue's
provenance, how was the Getty going to confirm or disprove the
information?" True wrote. "If Canavesi did know where the piece came
from, why had he not simply provided his information?"
In other cases, True has said that antiquities dealers held back
fragments of objects sold to the Getty so they could later try to
sell the missing pieces to the museum for large sums of money.
Walsh, Williams and True's attorneys did not return calls seeking
comment.
Hartwig, the Getty spokesman, would not disclose what the trust's
recent investigation had uncovered.
"We are continuing to look at certain pieces of evidence," he
said. "This is a very complex object. There is a lot of information
about it that needs to be carefully looked at and deciphered."
***@...
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-getty11nov11,0,2313496,print.story?coll=la-home-local
MABIC =
http://rassegnastampa.beniculturali.it/Rassegnanew/
14/11/2006 -
14/11/06 Corriere della Sera L'Italia e le opere trafugate: embargo
contro il Getty - Il Getty non rende le opere. Rutelli: "Embargo
culturale" Panza Pierluigi 1
14/11/06 Corriere della Sera Rutelli embargo al Getty ...
14/11/06 Repubblica Rutelli al Getty: subito le opere o embargo