I was asked to give a talk at my old school – somewhere in Wiltshire, as we used to say. The topic, by request, was my career, a rather boring subject, I decided, by the end of the talk. But the questions were good. What did I think about the return of the Elgin marbles ? What did I think about modern art ? What did I think about museum charges ? What did I think about the toppling of statues in the southern States ? What did I think about the school’s sale of its Gainsborough ? Is a copy a legitimate substitute for an original ? All the questions that I’ve got used to not being asked or, alternatively, not answering.
I hadn’t realised that you were at Marlborough. Did they have a good art master ?
A very good and wonderful art history master. Charles
So what do you think about the return of the Elgin Marbles….?
I think it’s become a sterile and irreconcilable discussion because the Trustees of the British Museum are never likely to renounce title unless the whole attitude to restitution changes radically. They should offer the latest digital replicas, and possibly loans, as a legitimate substitute. Charles