Italy to return 800 stolen Chinese artefacts
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It will be the largest international repatriation of lost Chinese cultural relics from overseas since 1998, when about 3,000 smuggled artefacts were returned from Britain.
An obvious point for the qn below would be that these artworks were stolen, smuggled out of the country without the consent of the owners....
Furthermore, these rich artworks are the cultural heritage of the Chinese, and should rightly be in their keepsake. They serve the role of telling them who they are, where they came from, etc. -- their identity. This is esp impt in educating the younger and future generations.
But if the role of art is to promote one's culture, to enable others to understand one's culture, then perhaps the artworks can better achieve this objective by staying in Italy, where they are more accessible to people from the West. Note that this role of the arts has acquired great urgency and importance today due to rising Islamophobia. Without understanding, fear and hostility can result. Westerners are more likely to visit Italy than China, so their exposure to Chinese culture is more conveniently achieved by having the artworks in Italy.
Nevertheless, one can still argue that ownership should still be returned to the country of origin, and have these artworks 'borrowed' to Italy; in which case these artworks are 'removed' only temporarily, with the understanding that they will be returned when the agreed loan period is over. Today, major artworks tour the world, visiting several countries to take temporary residence in their museums. This provides a window for the people of these countries to take a peek into the culture of a vastly different world from theirs....
Qn: ‘Works of art which have been removed from their country of origin should be returned.’ Discuss. (Cam. 2018)
It will be the largest international repatriation of lost Chinese cultural relics from overseas since 1998, when about 3,000 smuggled artefacts were returned from Britain.
An obvious point for the qn below would be that these artworks were stolen, smuggled out of the country without the consent of the owners....
Furthermore, these rich artworks are the cultural heritage of the Chinese, and should rightly be in their keepsake. They serve the role of telling them who they are, where they came from, etc. -- their identity. This is esp impt in educating the younger and future generations.
But if the role of art is to promote one's culture, to enable others to understand one's culture, then perhaps the artworks can better achieve this objective by staying in Italy, where they are more accessible to people from the West. Note that this role of the arts has acquired great urgency and importance today due to rising Islamophobia. Without understanding, fear and hostility can result. Westerners are more likely to visit Italy than China, so their exposure to Chinese culture is more conveniently achieved by having the artworks in Italy.
Nevertheless, one can still argue that ownership should still be returned to the country of origin, and have these artworks 'borrowed' to Italy; in which case these artworks are 'removed' only temporarily, with the understanding that they will be returned when the agreed loan period is over. Today, major artworks tour the world, visiting several countries to take temporary residence in their museums. This provides a window for the people of these countries to take a peek into the culture of a vastly different world from theirs....
Qn: ‘Works of art which have been removed from their country of origin should be returned.’ Discuss. (Cam. 2018)
posted by Dark Shadow | 12:12 PM
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