It is such a relief to see Sir N back in London. He is the finest of men: rich, visionary and bold. He is prepared to sacrifice everything – apart from himself, his museum, and the interests of the coalition – for the public good.
Last week he travelled to Syria for the launch of his latest touring exhibition, A Short History of Execution in 100 Objects. It tells how, from Tudor instruments of torture to laser-targeted missiles in Afghanistan, UK technology has led the way.
As with the V&A’s World Ceramics exhibition in Damascus in 2008-9, Sir N’s exhibition was opened live on Syrian television by the First Lady of Syria. She said her husband always valued British weapons for their effectiveness.
Aware of the sound of gunfire in the city, Sir N said Britain too had experienced civic disorder in the summer of 2011, because of imagined grievances, but that firm action by the coalition government had soon put a stop to that nonsense. He added that he hoped that this exhibition would provide a platform for dialogue in Syria.
That night, Sir N was seized by the rebels from his hotel room. Soon after, an insurgent leader appeared on an independent television station saying that Sir N seemed incapable of understanding Syria or the real meaning of democracy, and was ineducable.
He appealed to the British people directly to stop their national museums from working with corrupt and brutal regimes in the Middle East.
I was furious. How could these trouble-makers dare to question a noble-minded man like Sir N? And when will they learn from Britain that art is above politics?
Last week he travelled to Syria for the launch of his latest touring exhibition, A Short History of Execution in 100 Objects. It tells how, from Tudor instruments of torture to laser-targeted missiles in Afghanistan, UK technology has led the way.
As with the V&A’s World Ceramics exhibition in Damascus in 2008-9, Sir N’s exhibition was opened live on Syrian television by the First Lady of Syria. She said her husband always valued British weapons for their effectiveness.
Aware of the sound of gunfire in the city, Sir N said Britain too had experienced civic disorder in the summer of 2011, because of imagined grievances, but that firm action by the coalition government had soon put a stop to that nonsense. He added that he hoped that this exhibition would provide a platform for dialogue in Syria.
That night, Sir N was seized by the rebels from his hotel room. Soon after, an insurgent leader appeared on an independent television station saying that Sir N seemed incapable of understanding Syria or the real meaning of democracy, and was ineducable.
He appealed to the British people directly to stop their national museums from working with corrupt and brutal regimes in the Middle East.
I was furious. How could these trouble-makers dare to question a noble-minded man like Sir N? And when will they learn from Britain that art is above politics?
