Greece proposes EU museum network

Date: 23/10/1997

By Chris Johnstone

GREECE's culture minister is campaigning for the creation of an informal network of 'museums of Europe' across the EU as a stepping stone towards a more permanent liaison.

Evangelos Venizelos wants his Union counterparts to support the idea of setting up an informal network to promote aspects of European culture, in a move which could eventually pave the way for a fully fledged and funded EU programme.

Venizelos is following up an idea put forward by Greece's national art gallery director Marina Lambraki Plaka, who has called for a new type of museum to get away from art world exhibitions and stress some of the common themes and regional differences of Europe.

Plaka's original plan was for the new museums to be created in capitals or crossroad cities in every EU country. They would host travelling exhibitions and provide the permanent home for conferences, libraries and centres for access to electronic information about cultural events in other European countries.

A permanent network of museums would, says Plaka, fill a gap by giving a cultural dimension to Europe and also help to counteract the dominance of art and culture by the Union's economic powerhouses.

But such attacks on European cultural 'imperialism' might not endear the plan to other member governments if the idea ever progresses far enough for the Council of Ministers' support to be sought.

Plaka suggests EU funds could be used to pay for the building of the centres, the organisation of conferences and touring exhibitions, with joint funding of other running costs by national governments and the Union.

Administration would be placed in the hands of a small board made up of museum directors, with an art historian in charge and with the commercial art industry kept very much at arm's length.

Conceding that it may take a long time for her dream to become reality, Plaka nevertheless hopes that her ambitious project could be given life as a European initiative to mark the millennium. As an interim measure, she suggests that national museums could set aside at least two months a year to host exhibitions from other member states.

Cooperation between European museums is already promoted by the Union, but the results of projects covering a handful of sectors have been patchy.

Plaka's proposal comes at a time when the EU's culture programme faces a severe shortage of money.

Funding for the Raphael programme to promote cross-border cultural cooperation has been pegged back to 30 million ecu over four years - half the amount demanded by MEPs - and some EU countries, led by Italy, are calling on the Commission to redirect its spending towards broader programmes.