Australia: Melbourne’s City Museum, which is housed in the Old Treasury, is set to close this month. Curator Kate Luciano said the museum, which mainly borrowed works from private collectors, received about 30,000 visitors a year. The Victorian Marriage Registry will take over the space.
Egypt: A three-day conference for countries seeking the return of ancient artefacts from the collections of foreign museums will be held in Egypt next month.
At least 12 countries, including China, Greece, Iraq and Italy, will draw up a list of disputed antiquities and review international laws on the subject. Zahi Hawass, Egypt’s deputy culture minister, will oversee the conference.
France: President Nicolas Sarkozy is keen on building a French History Museum on the Ile Seguin in the River Seine in Paris, formerly home of a Renault car factory.
A planning company responsible for the island said it had “taken plans for the new museum into account”. Sarkozy’s plan is in the tradition of monumental presidential schemes such as the Louvre pyramid, which was commissioned by Francois Mitterrand.
Haiti: Unesco has asked the United Nations Security Council to adopt a resolution instituting a temporary ban on the trade or transfer of Haitian cultural property.
Unesco’s director-general, Irina Bokova, urged Interpol, the World Customs Organization and museum professionals worldwide to join the campaign. Sites at risk following the earthquake in January include the former presidential palace and cathedral in Port-au-Prince.
US: The San Francisco Museum of Art has announced plans to open a new wing by 2016. It would house part of the 1,100-piece contemporary and modern art collection of Donald and Doris Fisher, the founders of Gap clothing. The museum said it had raised $150m for the expansion. A temporary exhibition dedicated to the Fisher collection will open in June.
US: The National Soccer Hall of Fame and Museum in Oneonta, New York state, last month announced that it would close to the public because of a lack of funds.
Jonathan Ullman, the attraction’s president, said the operating budget was about $1m a year, but it had been running at a deficit. The hall attracted an average of 17,000 visitors a year. Exhibits and archives will be either stored or displayed at other venues.
Compiled by Gareth Harris. Seen in The Art Newspaper, Mercurynews.com, Melbourne Leader and Art Forum
