Indifference sealed the fate of the Gelman Collection

The fate of the Gelman Collection, now being moved to Cantabria for exhibition at Faro Santander, has become a test of how Mexico protects its artistic heritage.

The collection was acquired by businessman Lorenzo Zambrano and will be displayed in Spain from Tuesday, September 8. For writer and art critic Luis Ignacio Sáinz and cultural-law specialist Bolfy Cottom, the issue is not simply whether Mexico’s legislation is outdated or unconstitutional, as some analysts defending the agreement have argued. The events, they say, show the need to strengthen the law and create mechanisms that can mediate between public and private interests.

The agreement involved Banco Santander, Zambrano, who received a multimillion-dollar loan from the bank to acquire the collection, and the National Institute of Fine Arts and Literature, which endorsed the arrangement. The article questions what it describes as the cultural authorities’ indifference, lack of political will and omissions. It traces the opaque handling of emblematic works from the collection assembled by the American couple Jaques and Natasha Gelman, after curator Robert R. Littman became its heir and executor following Natasha Gelman’s death in 1998.

The article also highlights the current government’s support for Santander without clarifying the agreement’s terms. That stance contrasts with the government’s stated opposition to neoliberalism and defense of national sovereignty.

On July 19, before the collection’s exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art ended, it became known that Santander had granted Zambrano another loan, repayable over 12 years and secured by the same collection. The loan was registered with the Economy Ministry, headed by Marcelo Ebrard. Ebrard had previously supported efforts to defend Banamex’s cultural holdings and had raised the possibility of expropriation when Citi offered Banamex shares for sale. In the Gelman case, however, he took no public position.

Gerardo Estrada Rodríguez, a former director of the National Institute of Fine Arts, said the Zedillo government had an opportunity to acquire the collection. It then cost $300 million, while Littman was asking for $200 million. According to Sáinz, Estrada and the late Rafael Tovar y de Teresa played key roles in determining the legacy’s fate. Estrada said Tovar did not allow him to “take action on the matter.”

“

take action on the matter