The Art of Status

The Art of Status provides an amazing account of why and how art matters in international politics. Moving effortlessly across centuries and continents, Jelena Subotić shows how antique hunting and archeological plundering, theft and colonial possessiveness, and the looting of art by Nazi Germany connect to national identity and states seeking status. Impossible to put down, The Art of Status makes you look at art and debates over its restitution in a new and much brighter light. * Lene Hansen, Professor, University of Copenhagen * The Art of Status is a landmark book. Starting from a localised interest in art looted by the Nazis, Jelena Subotic stretches a much bigger canvas and paints a picture of the international politics of looting and restitution since the end of the 18th century. Beautifully written and masterfully researched, this book breaks ground by highlighting the status dimension of looting and restitution and demonstrating unquestionably how important this topic is to international relations past and present. * Halvard Leira, Research Director and Research Professor, Norwegian Institute of International Affairs * In The Art of Status, Subotic fascinates with her telling of the bloody history of looted artworks, from the Elgin Marbles, to the Benin Bronzes, to the countless galleries and private collections emptied by the Nazis. From the initial victims and villains, she traces the rising controversy over the return of stolen works, raising acutely current dilemmas about the politics of art. * Jason Sharman, Sir Patrick Sheehy Professor of International Relations, University of Cambridge * The question of why Nigeria seeks the return of the Benin Bronzes, or why any country fights for repatriation of its cultural property, has often been asked. But why is it that museums in Germany and the United States have surrendered so many Bronzes, while the British Museum holds its hundreds immobile? Subotić brilliantly flips the lens to ask why nations position themselves either as hoarders or restorers of stolen art. The Art of Status presents an utterly convincing analysis of the patterns and causes of nationalistic retention or return. Subotić's work will change both our understanding of repatriation's history and our activism for its future. * Erin Thompson, Professor of Art Crime, City University of New York *