The European Parliament's multi-million euro art collection
by Justin Stares
21 February 2012
The new valuation of the EP's art collection is expected to show it is now worth a fortune – meaning the press team will have to make a sturdy defence when the Eurosceptic parts of the media come calling
Few people know that the European Parliament is the proud owner of works by Peter Doig, one of the most expensive living painters. As part of its programme to support young, promising artists, the parliament bought two paintings by Edinburgh-born Doig back in the 1980s - two decades before his White Canoe sold at auction for $11m. Spending small sums on an annual basis, EP officials have over the last 30 years built up a 388-strong collection that includes major names such as Jörg Immendorf, A.R. Penk, Georg Baselitz and Maggie Hambling. When donations are included, there are now almost 550 pieces of art - both painting and sculpture.
Lobbyists and MEPS rushing from one committee meeting to the next routinely ignore the wall hangings that fill every nook and cranny of the Brussels assembly. Neither, until recently, have parliament officials themselves paid much attention. The last collection catalogue dates back to the early 1990s and has been out of stock for longer than anyone can remember. There is no curator. No exhibition outside the walls of the European Union institutions has ever taken place.
But this willful neglect is now coming to an end. On March 17, chartered arts and antiques surveyor Paul Britton will present the parliament with an updated valuation that is expected to show the collection is worth considerably more than the €4.2m for which it is currently insured. As part of a €120,000 public tender, another expert will present the EP with a report on the collection's state of conservation. A third has been charged with compiling the biographical material required for a new catalogue. When the collection is suitably insured once again, planning will begin on the first exhibitions outside of Brussels.
"The collection now does contain a number of works which have become quite valuable over the years," says parliament spokeswoman Marjory Van Den Broeke. "The works were originally - in the late 1970s and early 1980s - chosen by a small group of people and with a small budget. The aim was - apart from having some art in the house in the way other parliaments or large companies do - to support artists from all member states," she tells PublicServiceEurope.com. With every European Union accession, the parliament has allocated around €3,000 per MEP to the art acquisitions budget. Around €14,000 was spent on artwork when tiny Malta joined, whereas around €157,000 was spent on works by artists from Poland - one of the larger member states. After purchasing art from newly arrived Bulgaria and Romania, the buying programme is currently dormant. It will, however, be reactivated when Croatia joins the community - probably in 2013.
The parliament's communications team will have no choice, but to make the new valuation public. Replies to the inevitable Eurosceptic complaints have already been prepared. "Why is the parliament investing taxpayers' money on art at a time of economic hardship?" reads one of the frequently asked questions on the parliament website. "Isn't this an unaffordable luxury?" To which the institution answers that it is "proud of the cultural diversity of the EU and has always encouraged all actions aimed at promoting it". The collection "bears witness to the development of art in Europe and it provides a magnificent way of getting to know the richness of culture in European countries".
The most expensive Doig paintings are worth much more than the insured value of the entire collection, though Doig's pieces from the 1980s have not done as well at auction. The last works from this period fetched around €100,000 in 2006 and 2007. Sadly, it is for the moment not possible to view the collection's star attractions; the most valuable paintings have been taken down and placed in storage for safekeeping. Given the ease with which robbers held up the bank branch within the Brussels assembly building – making off with tens of thousands of euros - this is probably a good thing.
Few people know that the European Parliament is the proud owner of works by Peter Doig, one of the most expensive living painters. As part of its programme to support young, promising artists, the parliament bought two paintings by Edinburgh-born Doig back in the 1980s - two decades before his White Canoe sold at auction for $11m. Spending small sums on an annual basis, EP officials have over the last 30 years built up a 388-strong collection that includes major names such as Jörg Immendorf, A.R. Penk, Georg Baselitz and Maggie Hambling. When donations are included, there are now almost 550 pieces of art - both painting and sculpture.
Lobbyists and MEPS rushing from one committee meeting to the next routinely ignore the wall hangings that fill every nook and cranny of the Brussels assembly. Neither, until recently, have parliament officials themselves paid much attention. The last collection catalogue dates back to the early 1990s and has been out of stock for longer than anyone can remember. There is no curator. No exhibition outside the walls of the European Union institutions has ever taken place.
But this willful neglect is now coming to an end. On March 17, chartered arts and antiques surveyor Paul Britton will present the parliament with an updated valuation that is expected to show the collection is worth considerably more than the €4.2m for which it is currently insured. As part of a €120,000 public tender, another expert will present the EP with a report on the collection's state of conservation. A third has been charged with compiling the biographical material required for a new catalogue. When the collection is suitably insured once again, planning will begin on the first exhibitions outside of Brussels.
"The collection now does contain a number of works which have become quite valuable over the years," says parliament spokeswoman Marjory Van Den Broeke. "The works were originally - in the late 1970s and early 1980s - chosen by a small group of people and with a small budget. The aim was - apart from having some art in the house in the way other parliaments or large companies do - to support artists from all member states," she tells PublicServiceEurope.com. With every European Union accession, the parliament has allocated around €3,000 per MEP to the art acquisitions budget. Around €14,000 was spent on artwork when tiny Malta joined, whereas around €157,000 was spent on works by artists from Poland - one of the larger member states. After purchasing art from newly arrived Bulgaria and Romania, the buying programme is currently dormant. It will, however, be reactivated when Croatia joins the community - probably in 2013.
The parliament's communications team will have no choice, but to make the new valuation public. Replies to the inevitable Eurosceptic complaints have already been prepared. "Why is the parliament investing taxpayers' money on art at a time of economic hardship?" reads one of the frequently asked questions on the parliament website. "Isn't this an unaffordable luxury?" To which the institution answers that it is "proud of the cultural diversity of the EU and has always encouraged all actions aimed at promoting it". The collection "bears witness to the development of art in Europe and it provides a magnificent way of getting to know the richness of culture in European countries".
The most expensive Doig paintings are worth much more than the insured value of the entire collection, though Doig's pieces from the 1980s have not done as well at auction. The last works from this period fetched around €100,000 in 2006 and 2007. Sadly, it is for the moment not possible to view the collection's star attractions; the most valuable paintings have been taken down and placed in storage for safekeeping. Given the ease with which robbers held up the bank branch within the Brussels assembly building – making off with tens of thousands of euros - this is probably a good thing.
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