GUIMET web

Bangladesh highlighted at the Guimet Museum: 

Bangladesh highlighted at the Guimet Museum What about it ?

The first major international exhibition of Bangladeshi archaeological masterpieces: 

The first major international exhibition of Bangladeshi archaeological masterpieces 188 items from 5 museums : Dhaka National Museum, museums of Paharpur, Mahasthan and Mainamati, Varendra Museum. Going to the Guimet National Museum, the foremost museum in Europe dedicated to asian art from october 2007 to March 2008

The first major international exhibition of Bangladeshi archaeological masterpieces: 

The first major international exhibition of Bangladeshi archaeological masterpieces Meaning there are some legitimate questions that we shall address.

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Questions relating to Bangladeshi laws, regulations and procedures should be asked to the relevant authorities. The French Embassy has neither the right nor the will to enter into these questions. We shall ONLY address questions relating to France and international exhibitions.

Guimet museum ???: 

Guimet museum ??? The National Guimet Museum of asian arts is the bigest and best know museum entirely dedicated to asian arts in Europe. It is managed by a committee with a President, but it is a NATIONAL museum which ultimatly answers to the French Gouvernement.

International exhibitions: 

International exhibitions What are they ?

They are routine: 

They are routine Imperial court in china (2004) Vietnam : Champa sculptures (2006) Confucius (2005) Guimet does two or three a year :

And everybody else does it too…: 

And everybody else does it too… AUSTRALIA / MELBOURNE NATIONAL GALLERY OF VICTORIA -- To Oct. 7: "Guggenheim Collection: 1940s to Now." On loan from the Guggenheim museums in New York (the principal lender), Venice, Bilbao and Berlin, a display of more than 85 works by 65 artists in a variety of media - painting, works on paper, sculpture, photography and new media. Ranging from "the beautiful to the confronting," the show documents the evolution of western art with representative works from each decade: postwar figurations, Abstract Expressionism, Minimalism and Pop Art. Artists of the 21st century are also represented: Jeff Koons, Suling Wang and Olafur Eliasson, among others. The works also are arrayed so as to offer a meditation on today's global society, especially its political repression, wars and consumerism.-- www.ngv.vic.gov.a 15th September 2007

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AUSTRIA / VIENNA BELVEDERE, ORANGERIE -- To Sept. 16: "Meisterwerke Mittelalterlicher Kunst aus dem Nationalmuseum Warschau." On loan from the medieval collection of the Warsaw museum, more than 25 sculptures, altarpieces and panel pictures spanning the 12th through the 16th centuries. They illustrate the main developments in Gothic art created in Wroclaw, Krakow and Gdansk, and other places in Silesia and Pomerania. -- GERMANY NEUE NATIONALGALERIE -- To Oct. 7: "Französische Meisterwerke des 19. Jahrhunderts aus der Sammlung des Metropolitan Museum of Art New York." About 135 works from the Met's collection of French 19th-century paintings, ranging from society portraits by Ingres to works by Manet, Courbet and Renoir, and ending with paintings by Picasso. They are on loan while the Met galleries, where they usually hang, undergo renovation. The show also features 15 French sculptures, including nine works by Rodin

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KYOTO MUNICIPAL MUSEUM -- To Sept. 24: "Masterpieces From the Philadelphia Museum of Art: Impressionism and Modern Art." On loan from the collection of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, one of America's main art institutions, are 62 paintings and sculptures by Manet, Monet, Cézanne, Matisse, Picasso and other artists active in the 19th and 20th centuries, along with 15 works by Georgia O'Keefe, Andrew Wyeth and others. The paintings will travel to Tokyo. HONG KONG MUSEUM OF ART -- To Dec. 2: "Treasures of the World's Cultures from the British Museum." Founded in 1753, the British Museum has been able to assemble some seven million artworks from all continents and all periods of time. It has selected about 270 works -- paintings, sculptures, jewelry, porcelain and stone artifacts -- to be exhibited in Asia (they were in Taiwan earlier this year). They provide a glimpse at the world's cultural heritage from the Paleolithic to the 20th century, and document such diverse cultures as ancient Egypt, Greece and the Roman Empire, as well as the various artistic trends in Europe, America, Asia and Africa. photos requested

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OSAKA NATIONAL MUSEUM OF ART -- To Sept 17: "The Greatest Treasures of Russian Tsars: Wonders of the Kremlin, a World Heritage Site." More than 200 icons, paintings, decorative and religious objects, on loan from the Armory Chamber in the Kremlin, attest to the opulent lifestyle at the court of the Czars, from the 12th to the early 20th century. SEOUL NATIONAL MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART, DEOKSUGUNG -- To Sept. 30: "Great Habsburg Collectors: Masterpieces From the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna." One of the main ruling dynasties in Europe from the 15th century to the end of World War II, the Habsburgs were also enthusiastic patrons and astute art collectors. Since the end of the 19th century, their acquisitions have been housed in the Vienna Kunsthistorisches Museum: They cover the Renaissance, Baroque and Rococo periods in Europe, and include works by Velázquez, Rubens, Titian and Cranach, among others. The selection of 64 paintings will travel to Taipei in October

An a few MORE exemples from the British Museum…: 

An a few MORE exemples from the British Museum… Art and Empire: Treasures from Assyria in the British Museum Museo Arqueologico Provincial de Alicante (MARQ), Alicante, Spain 2 April 2007 – 30 September 2007 Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, USA September 2008 – January 2009 A New World: England’s first view of America North Carolina Museum of History, NC, USA 20 October 2007 – 13 January 2008 Yale Center for British Art, Yale, USA 6 March 2008 – 1 June 2008 Jamestown Settlement, Virginia, USA 15 July 2008 – 15 October 2008

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They are hugely valuable and feature ONLY unique masterpieces The Gold from Afghanisthan came to Paris The Mona Lisa went to Japan and the USA Rodin’s scultures went to India Toutenkhamon’s treasures Went to France and Germany

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In 2005, (last published reports) the Louvre Museum in Paris loaned more than 800 items The Guimet Museum lended 90 items in 2005 and 175 in 2006, 85 of those abroad.

International exhibitions: 

International exhibitions Always Present originals There are NO exceptions.

Being routine, international exhibitions have standard conditions and agreements.: 

Being routine, international exhibitions have standard conditions and agreements. Conditions of loan and restitution Financial costs supported by the borrower Packing and transport done by specialists Insurance of items Couriers and keepers Security and viewing conditions Dispute resolution

A few points on the agreements:: 

A few points on the agreements: All items are listed, photographed and numbered. The list and the condition of the items are checked before and after each transport. The packing is done by highly reputed specialists (the firm, André Chenu ltd, is 300 years old. The contract was awarded through an open tender)

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The items travel with a courier. Insurance is carried by a specilized firm underwritten by Lloyd’s of London. The French Governement has issued a decree, reference MCCF0761022A, excluding each and every possibility of keeping the items in France. Viewing conditions are strict and ensure total security : no theft or accident ever happened during an exhibition at Guimet.

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Any dispute arising from this agreement would be settled in Bangladesh although normal procedure would be to use international arbitration.

Insurance and return of the items.: 

Insurance and return of the items. The two questions are quite separate. The return of the items is guaranted by the borrower, who stakes its’ reputation. Ultimatly, it is guaranted by the French Governement. Insurance covers the very unlikely possibility of an accident. In this instance, bonds doubling the insurance values were signed.

International exhibitions are: 

International exhibitions are TOTALLY Exempt of major problems because of the extraordinary precautions used. There has not been a single major problem worldwide in the last 50 years!

In Bangladesh: 

In Bangladesh Official preparations started 4 years ago. There has been an intense dialogue between French experts and their Bangladeshis counterparts based on an ongoing cooperation (Mahasthan & National Museum of Dhaka, since 1993). The project has been approuved by the highest authorities, such as the then Prime Minister and the Chief Adviser, as it obviously benefits Bangladesh’s international image.

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The Guimet Museum went out of its’ way to make things easier for Bangladesh : The conventions were signed by the French Embassy (it is normally signed only the museums) Insurance values were set according to international standards… And then upped to 2M€ And doubled to 4M€ (37 crore tk) through custom bonds. There will be TWO Bangladeshi specialists in the Guimet museum during the whole exhibition. (normal procedure allows only for couriers)

NOW, there has been some questions in the press. Here are the most common.: 

NOW, there has been some questions in the press. Here are the most common.

« Such valuable items should not leave Bangladesh. »: 

« Such valuable items should not leave Bangladesh. » That is up to Bangladesh, but you would be the only one : as we have seen, all countries lend and borrow museum items. Image is an important factor now. This exhibition will be a powerful tool to build a positive image of Bangladesh abroad.

«  Replicas should be send. »: 

«  Replicas should be send. » Simply unthinkable, as we have seen : it is originals or nothing.

« Replicas could be substituted to the originals in France… or everything could be kept there ! »: 

« Replicas could be substituted to the originals in France… or everything could be kept there ! » This is an insult made to a friendly and honorable government : France has officially pledged its’ word that items will come back. The reputation of French National museums would not survive such a scandal.

« Trafficking may occur. »: 

« Trafficking may occur. » NO Precautions are fail-safe and every step has been scrutinized : even if one insider tries, he can not possibly succeed.

« Consultations were not properly done. »: 

« Consultations were not properly done. » The French side talked extensively with all the experts officially concerned. We have no comment on unofficial consultations done, or not done, by the Bangladeshi side.

« Research will be hampered. »: 

« Research will be hampered. » Rather the opposite : research will benefit from the international exposure and from the catalogue. Besides, can any expert pretend he has to see the item to research it ? All those items are well documented and photographed.

« Museums will look empty. »: 

« Museums will look empty. » All museums have reserves which vastly outnumber the items on display : this is an opportunity to shown rarely seen artefacts.

« France borrows but does not lend. »: 

« France borrows but does not lend. » Not so. We have seen previously that we do lend a lot and everywhere In 2005, National museums in France have lended more than 3,000 items abroad.

« Can Bangladesh borrow from France ? »: 

« Can Bangladesh borrow from France ? » You are welcomed. The same conditions would apply.

« Why did the authorities stop the export ? »: 

« Why did the authorities stop the export ? » They did NOT Because all this is new and because of Ramazan, they were delays. The items did not leave for the airport and the authorities are trying their best to better the image of Bangladesh by expediting this project.

The first major international exhibition of Bangledeshi archaelogical masterpieces: 

The first major international exhibition of Bangledeshi archaelogical masterpieces Meaning some people who should know better are using it for their own reasons that have nothing to do with the exhibition. We shall NOT address this… but think about it

THANK YOU: 

THANK YOU