DA CULTURA

Agora que o simples facto de discordar do modelo de gestão do maior museu nacional, o Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga, levou ao afastamento da sua directora, e provocou uma enorme onda de choque em pleno mês de Agosto, com ampla informação nos orgãos de comunicação social, um abaixo-assinado na net e até comentários por parte do Presidente da República, parece conveniente, neste formigueiro, chamar a atenção para um livro publicado em França em 2006, e que em Portugal passou práticamente despercebido.

De la culture em Amérique, assim se chama o livro, tem como autor Frederic Martel, antigo adido cultural francês em Boston.

Como ainda não tivemos oportunidade de o lêr, é preferivel dar a palavra a quem já teve essa oportunidade.

"La problématique de l’ouvrage est ainsi définie : “Comment une immense coalition d’entreprises privées, d’agences publiques, d’institutions à but non lucratif, de riches philanthropes, d’universités et de communautés, tous autonomes, finissent par faire politique ? Comment ces acteurs, concurrents et partenaires, poursuivant leurs intérêts particuliers peuvent-ils donner naissance à un intérêt général et constituer collectivement un système global redoutablement efficace ?”
Le Monde (link)

"This book has become a highly topical must-read among cognoscenti of the French-American relationship, especially anyone who pays attention to the special dimension of “cultural politics” in which the U.S. free-market approach contrasts with France’s tradition of state-run arts and culture. At a time of generational transition in France, Martel’s excursion on American culture with a view to influencing France – his title “On Culture in America” harkens back to Tocqueville’s “On Democracy in America”– has been respectfully noticed in American circles. The reception was more wary in France, where it has triggered a mixture of admiration for the author’s reporting and some controversy about the author’s message.
In his book – and it’s a big one in every sense – Martel has done the equivalent of heaving a boulder into the pond of cultural affairs; the waves seem bound to ripple on, quietly for the moment but perhaps with a bigger splash as events play out. Initially, the reaction has been respectful of his work and guarded about its implications. But the questions and pressure for reforms raised in Martel’s book seem likely to gain traction under the new government of President Nicolas Sarkozy and perhaps even trigger some re-examination of French cultural dogmas among the Socialist-left" - European Affairs (link)

“What really annoys me is the way our cultural elite uses ideology to protect its privileges,” he said. “It says that our culture defines a certain idea of France, that the alternative is Americanization. But it’s really only defending itself against the popular classes. We cannot have 10 percent of our population stemming from immigration and deny them their culture.”
To promote grass-roots culture, then, he wants decision making to be deconcentrated. “The government will still finance the arts, but we don’t need a minister defining culture,” he said. “We need thousands of people defining culture. Power should flow bottom-up, not top-down. That’s the debate I want to provoke in the new year.”
He seemed to be looking forward to a fight. “That’s why my book is about France,” he said, “while being about America.” - The New York Times (link)

Será que o movimento que se gerou à volta do afastamento de Dalila Rodrigues vai deixar passar esta oportunidade de promover, de forma alargada e aberta, um debate sobre o estado da cultura em Portugal?

Os partidos políticos não o vão fazer, essa é uma experiência já antiga, cabe agora aos cidadãos tomarem esta e outras iniciativas.

Vamos esperar por Setembro.