Selling off the investment

Britain is doing incredibly well in the art market during the ‘recession’ and is bucking the trend. However, the Independent has revealed we’re selling off works that should be ‘saved for the nation’.

Before art of national importance can be exported it must first be offered to cultural institutions. This system has been described as a cultural safety net.

However, less than a third of the antiques, paintings and manuscripts that the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest recommended should be “saved for the nation” actually stayed put. Come on Britain, sort it out, we don’t want to be a nation renowned for losing its best art!