Reposted from Artnet News

As the Spanish Civil War raged between 1936 and 1939, Republican forces took hold of thousands of paintings and sculptures, as well as other valuables, to safeguard them from the conflict. When the regime of dictator Francisco Franco took control, it never returned them, and these items, including books, furniture, ceramics, liturgical ornaments, and jewelry, made their way into various state museums. His regime came to an end in 1975, but it is only now, 50 years later, that Spain’s culture ministry has put forth a list of more than 5,000 items that were seized.
The artifacts are currently in the collections of nine institutions, including, in Madrid, the National Archaeological Museum, the National Museum of Romanticism, the National Museum of Decorative Arts, the National Museum of Anthropology, the Museum of America and the Sorolla Museum; in Valencia, National Museum of Ceramics and Decorative Arts “González Martí”; and, in Valladolid, the National Museum of Sculpture. The Ministry of Culture also uncovered a painting preserved at its own headquarters.
“We’re offering a space in which people can learn about our history,” said Spain’s culture minister, Ernest Urtasun. “We’re also opening the door to returning those pieces that can be identified to their rightful owners.”
During the first days of the military uprising, according to the department of culture, the Republican government established the Artistic Treasury Board, whose purpose was to protect cultural assets. As insurgent troops occupied more territories, they created the Service for the Defense of National Artistic Heritage, which was to be responsible for returning the works to their owners after the war. 
One group of works came from collector and art dealer José Weissberger, who was prosecuted by the Court of Political Responsibilities, which targeted supporters of the Republic. They are the only works in the newly released list that originated in embargoes carried out by the Franco dictatorship, according to the Ministry of Culture; they found their way into the holdings of the Museum of Decorative Arts. 
Yesterday’s publication of the list is an outgrowth of the Democratic Memory Law, which went into effect in 2022 and is meant to address the aftermath of the Franco regime. It also includes provisions requiring the teaching of the history of the dictatorship, renders void convictions for military rebellion, requires the exhumation of mass graves, and requires the removal of various Francoist monuments, among others. 
Those who believe they have a claim on any of the 5,126 artifacts can submit an application with the Ministry of Culture, which says that responses will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

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Reposted from Le Monde

Smoked emerged from the Château de Versailles on Tuesday, June 11 and several thousand people were evacuated after a fire broke out on part of the roof under construction, but was quickly brought under control, Le Monde learned from the estate's press office. The fire started in the marble courtyard, a black-and-white paved area not far from the king's bedroom.
Smoke was spotted at 3:13 pm in a construction area, a press officer confirmed. The fire department was called and the visitors were evacuated as a safety precaution. The fire was quickly extinguished "with a bucket of water," the department's fire and rescue services (SDIS) told Agence France-Presse.
The Château and gardens reopened at around 4:30 pm. Almost 100 fire-fighters were mobilized and teams remained on site to prevent any further outbreak of fire in the attic, added the same source.
No one was injured and there was no damage to the collections, the press office old Reuters. The Château de Versailles, the third most visited site in France, behind Disneyland Paris and the Louvre Museum, welcomed 8.1 million visitors in 2023, 77% of whom were foreign.

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Reposted from CJLS

There’s nothing left of the Bangor Sawmill Museum after an early morning fire in Digby County.
Firefighters were called to the scene just after 4 a.m. Saturday in Meteghan River.
Meteghan fire chief Kevin Saulnier says it was fully engulfed when they arrived.
No injuries were reported, and the cause is under investigation.
After the fire was put out, the remains of the building had to be torn down for safety reasons.
Saulnier says four other fire departments provided mutual aid, Salmon River, Little Brook, St Bernard and Southville.
He says they are all volunteers, up to 100 people were on scene at one point.
The Bangor Sawmill Museum was a restored 19th century water-powered-turbine lumber sawmill.

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Reposted from Artnet News

Performance artist Deborah De Robertis was charged with the damage and theft of “cultural property” after tagging five artworks, including Gustav Courbet’s L’Origine du Monde, with the slogan #MeToo. A French prosecutor announced the indictment of De Robertis, as well as two others, on Monday. In early May, the women entered the Centre Pompidou-Metz in northern France and graffitied the glass pane protecting Courbet’s 1886 painting of a women’s nude torso and exposed vulva. The painting was on loan from Paris’s Musée d’Orsay for the show “Lacan, the exhibition. When art meets psychoanalysis,” which examines theories of the unconscious proposed by the French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan, who once owned the Courbet painting. Five other works, by artists such as Valie Export, Louise Bourgeois, and Rosmarie Trockel, were also tagged. A photograph by De Robertis, taken during a performance of Mirror of Origin (2014), in which she poses nude beneath Courbet’s work, was also tagged. Meanwhile, an embroidered piece by the French artist Annette Messager, titled I Think Therefore I Suck (1991), was stolen from the museum. In a video taken of the action, protesters chanted “Me Too” as they were removed from the premises by museum security.  De Robertis later claimed to have orchestrated the action as part of performance work, titled You Don’t Separate the Woman from the Artist. The title references the ongoing debate about whether art can be appreciated in isolation from the behavior of its creator. 

The slogan #MeToo gained prominence in 2017 as part of a global movement against the sexual violence of women. At the peak of the movement’s momentum, a slew high-profile artist, as well as staff in the gallery and museum sectors, faced accusations of sexual harassment or assault.   De Robertis told the AFP that the performance at the Centre Pompidou-Metz was staged because “the very closed world of contemporary art has remained largely silent until now.” She had previously made headlines for exposing herself in front of L’Origine du Monde, Édouard Manet’s Olympia (1863), and the Mona Lisa.  In a statement shared via Medium on May 13, De Robertis wrote: “I violated museums, from the Orsay Museum to the Louvre Museum to the Pompidou Center. I entered them by force, without consent or permission, to claim my place in history.” Addressing “collectors, art critics, gallery owners, historians, directors of institutions, art centers and museums,” De Robertis denounced “predators” who leverage their power in the art world to exploit vulnerable women artists. Curator Bernard Marcadé, who co-organized the Centre Pompidou-Metz show, was the only person named in the post. According to AFP, De Robertis has not been detained, although she is barred by court order from entering exhibitions in the Moselle region, which includes part of France and Luxembourg.

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Reposted from Artnet News

A climate activist for the group Riposte Alimentaire (Food Counterattack) has been arrested after gluing a poster onto a masterpiece by Monet at the Musée d’Orsay in Paris on Saturday. This protest is the latest in a slew of actions claimed by Riposte Alimentaire that took place at high-profile cultural institutions designed to call attention to the climate crisis. “This destruction of art by delinquents cannot be justified in any way,” declared France’s culture minister Rachida Dati on X (formerly Twitter). “It must stop!” She added that she is in touch with the minister of justice to work towards implementing a new penal policy to punish these acts of protest, which often cause no long-term harm so evade prosecution for the damage of cultural property. The museum confirmed that the painting has been inspected by a restoration expert who reported no permanent damage. It is now back on display. The painting Coquelicots (Poppy Field) (1873) is a charmingly picturesque view of a woman and child strolling through a field filled with bright red poppies. It was painted near Argenteuil, a small-town northwest of Paris where Monet settled in 1871 and is currently part of the “Paris 1874: Inventing Impressionism” exhibition at the Musée d’Orsay (through July 14th, 2024). As seen in a video of the attack posted by Riposte Alimentaire, the protestor stuck a poster over the top of the painting that showed a comparatively dystopian vision of the world as it might look in 2073, or even 2173, if urgent action isn’t taken to curb greenhouse gas emissions. The details of this scene are hard to make out but there appear to be no poppies in its barren landscape. Instead, it is the sky that is flushed with tones of fiery red. The activist wore a white t-shirt with the words “+4°[C] L’Enfer” (“+4°[C] Hell”) handwritten in black pen. After affixing the poster over the protective glass covering the canvas, she glued her hand to the wall just below the picture frame and began to address visitors milling around the gallery, who remained quiet and did not attempt to intervene. “This nightmarish image awaits us if no alternative is put in place,” she declared. “At four more degrees, hell awaits us,” referring to the serious consequences of global temperatures potentially rising to 4° Celsius (7° Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels. According to reports by French news agency AFP, the museum plans to file a criminal complaint. It did not respond to a request for further comment by publishing time. “This is what Claude Monet would probably have painted in 2100 if no radical measures are taken to stop climate change by then,” Riposte Alimentaire wrote on X. “As a reminder, this IPCC scenario is not the most pessimistic, since a trajectory of more than +4°C is projected.” It drew attention to the role of “productivist and ecocidal agriculture” in contributing 21 percent of France’s greenhouse gas emissions. It called for substantial reform, opposing the new Agricultural Orientation Law, which is currently under discussion in French parliament. Last month it was reported that only some of its targets, like keeping 15 percent of farmland for organic agriculture, had been scrapped.
Just last month, two activists were arrested for scattering bags of orange powder over the floors of the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles, outside Paris. Just days later, the group targeted one of France’s most prized paintings, Delacroix’s Liberty Leading the People at the Louvre. It has just been rehung following a major six-month restoration. In February, two protestors flung soup at Monet’s Spring (1872) at the Musée des Beaux-Art in Lyon, and the month before that they hurled pumpkin soup at the Mona Lisa at the Louvre.

Reposted from Lyrasis

The Performing Arts Readiness (PAR) project is offering the free emergency preparedness webinars listed below that are tailored to the needs of performing arts organizations during June:
Webinars:
 
Community Recovery Through Arts and Culture, June 6 at 2:00
Description: Arts and culture - through the artists and organizations that bring them to life in communities - have a vital role to play in recovery from disasters. Whether connecting people through music, dance, theater or other experiences; providing moments of respite, joy, and humor; allowing people to tell their personal stories of the disaster through visual, verbal, or other means; or even just providing a place to congregate, gather information, or grab a cup of coffee, arts and culture and the organizations that produce them enable us to move from victimhood to personhood, even if only for a moment, and help us rebuild the social infrastructure of our individual and community lives.
In this webinar, we will focus on how artists and arts organizations can engage in this work. We will provide background in basic disaster management principles, share good practices, give guiding principles, brief how-tos, leave you with resources for further study, and answer any questions you may have. Rebuilding social infrastructure strengthens communities’ abilities to move forward after disasters. Learn how to be part of the process and gain a seat at the table in your community’s recovery.
Instructor: Mary Eileen Fouratt, Amy Schwartzman, and Mollie Quinlan-Hayes

Lessons Learned from the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival Shooting, June 12, 2024 at 2:00 ET
Description: Kelly Hubbard was attending day 3 of the Route 91 Country Music Festival with her daughter and a few friends when someone opened fire on the crowd of 22,000 attendees. 58 attendees died that evening, with hundreds more severely injured, making that night the worst mass shooting to date in our Country’s history. Kelly speaks as a survivor, but also as an emergency manager on the events of that evening to help others in her profession and in the entertainment and hospitality industry to improve large event planning and mass casualty response.
This session will reflect on lessons for all parties involved in large pop-up location event planning and mass casualty response. Learning outcomes will include considerations for security and safety in pop-up venues, coordination concepts with local government partners, understanding the response and recovery process, considerations for integration of non-traditional response partners and trauma care for survivors and staff. Concepts such as how to integrate those who may not think they have a role (such as the hotels that became triage and shelter centers with no warning) will be covered. Insight will be provided on how survivors of traumatic events get information regarding hospitals, Family Assistance Centers, and recovery resources, especially when watching the news is experiencing the trauma all over again.
Instructor: Kelly Hubbard

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Reposted from Tim Richardson

It happened in an instant. The speeding motorcycle slammed into the back of a delivery truck. It happened so quickly that there was no avoiding the accident. The motorcycle was going too fast, and the truck was traveling too slow. My wife witnessed this horrible event yesterday when she was a passenger in a car right behind the motorcycle. While she didn’t know either the truck or motorcycle driver, she was visibly shaken as she witnessed the aftermath on a busy road. The biker’s helmet and shoes had both flown off during impact and his bloody skin was exposed through his ripped clothing. He was begging for people to move him off the hot pavement. Thankfully, law enforcement and medical professionals arrived quickly. Their rapid response and knowledge may have saved his life. Sometimes a few seconds is all it takes for bodily injury or an accident to occur. However, there are other types of injury that aren’t as quick to appear like the aftermath of a motorcycle accident. It’s not as easy to identify them because they take time to develop, and the signs can be hidden. These are the internal injuries related to a person’s mental health and well-being. The causes can be so different and affect people in a myriad of ways. The symptoms can appear so slowly and subtly. Unlike the accident my wife observed, the victim may not ask for help. While organizations should always make it a priority, May is Mental Health Awareness Month which is a great reminder to keep tabs on the health of your team and others in your life. Below are a few common signs that someone might be struggling and needing help. There’s a complete list at https://www.nami.org/about-mental-illness/warning-signs-and-symptoms/

·      Excessive worrying or fear

·      Feeling excessively sad or low

·      Confused thinking or problems concentrating and learning

·      Extreme mood changes, including uncontrollable “highs” or feelings of euphoria

·      Prolonged or strong feelings of irritability or anger

·      Avoidance of friends and social activities

·      Difficulties understanding or relating to other people

·      Inability to carry out daily activities or handle daily problems and stress

It would be difficult to recognize these symptoms without having regular contact. Conscientious leaders are tuned in to those around them and check in regularly with those who may be suffering. They communicate available resources that can provide confidential help and support. They take time out every day to simply ask questions like; “How are you doing? Is there any way I can support you today? Do you need to take some time to pause to regain your stride?” When accidents or mental health issues occur, it’s not just the victim that suffers. Make workplace wellness and positive mental health a priority for your organization.

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Reposted from EMR-ISAC

Each year in the first full week of May, the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) observes Arson Awareness Week. This year, the USFA and the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) co-hosted a webinar with representatives from CISA entitled “Protecting Houses of Worship from Arson.” If you did not have the opportunity to participate in the webinar, the recording is now available within the NVFC’s Virtual Classroom. The recording can be accessed with a free NVFC Virtual Classroom account. The fire service can use the information from this year’s webinar to work with houses of worship in their communities to reduce the occurrence of arson and its devastating effects. The following is a summary of the key takeaways and links to highlighted resources that provide further guidance. Although arson is defined as a property crime, arson destroys much more than buildings. Arson can be economically devastating to communities and can result in loss of life. Additionally, the burning of property is only one way that fire can be weaponized. “Fire as a weapon” is defined as any time fire is used to cause chaos, destruction, damage to buildings and infrastructure, harm to people, or to force people to evacuate. Assailants use fire as a weapon to target public gathering events, critical infrastructure, and individuals directly. While incidents involving intentional fire setting are tracked nationally as “arson” incidents, tracking of incidents matching criteria where fire was used as a weapon is less robust. This year’s Arson Awareness webinar addressed national trends and risks associated with both arson and fire-as-a-weapon incidents and the implications of these incidents for houses of worship. Fire can be weaponized with little to no specialized skill or training. Precursors are inexpensive, legal and readily available. Unfortunately, this makes fire an appealing choice for those who wish to cause significant harm. Houses of worship are often locations for large public gatherings and are considered to be soft targets. These locations are easily accessible and often have minimal security, increasing their vulnerability to a variety of security risks. Due to their faith-based affiliations, houses of worship are also vulnerable to targeted attacks.

The webinar reviewed incidents of arson against houses of worship to illustrate the wide variety of motives and tactics of arsonists. Two of the most recent include a fire intentionally set inside the 100-year-old Our Lady of the Lake Roman Catholic Church in Verona, New Jersey on April 4, 2024, and an intentional fire on the grounds of the Las Olas Chabad Jewish Center in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on March 16, 2024. Whether criminal, ideological, financial, political, juvenile, or psychological, all arson has the end effect of instilling fear. The final segment of the webinar was presented by one of CISA’s Protective Security Advisors (PSAs). This presentation reviewed the role of a PSA as a mission partner with federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial governments, and private sector stakeholders to protect critical infrastructure. PSAs can connect houses of worship and local emergency response agencies with CISA’s resources, technical assistance, training, and funding opportunities.

The presentation emphasized the critical role of local emergency services agencies in proactively developing relationships with leadership at every house of worship in their community. Emergency responders should be involved in the planning and risk assessment process with their local houses of worship. The presentation reviews best practices to counter arson threats, such as ensuring “no trespassing signs” are posted on the property so that police are authorized to investigate suspicious behavior and collaborating with houses of worship on their emergency operations plans. The presentation highlights several CISA resources to assist with planning and assessment.

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Reposted from EMR-ISAC

In last year’s May-September warm season, rates of emergency department visits for heat-related illness substantially increased across several U.S. regions compared with previous years, especially among males and adults aged 18–64 years, according to a recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Heat waves are becoming more frequent, hotter and longer lasting than in previous decades. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is predicting above-normal temperatures across the midwestern, western and southern lower 48 states during the summer 2024 season. Heat-related illness will continue to be a significant public health concern. Extreme heat kills more Americans than any other weather event, but heat-related illnesses are preventable. The public often lack awareness about how dangerous extreme heat can be, and effective mitigation of the risks of extreme heat requires a multi-disciplinary response, shared across multiple agencies.

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Reposted from EMR-ISAC

On May 9, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) announced the release of the 2024 National Drug Threat Assessment (NDTA). This annual report is DEA’s comprehensive strategic assessment of illicit drug threats and trafficking trends endangering the United States.

DEA’s top priority is reducing the supply of deadly drugs in our country and defeating the two cartels responsible for the vast majority of drug trafficking in the United States. The drug poisoning crisis remains a public safety, public health, and national security issue, which requires a new approach. Drug-related deaths claimed 107,941 American lives in 2022, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Fentanyl and other synthetic opioids are responsible for approximately 70% of lives lost, while methamphetamine and other synthetic stimulants are responsible for approximately 30% of deaths. Fentanyl is the nation’s greatest and most urgent drug threat. The advent of fentanyl mixtures to include other synthetic opioids, such as netzines, or the veterinary sedative xylazine have increased the harms associated with fentanyl.  Seizures of fentanyl, in both powder and pill form, are at record levels. Over the past two years seizures of fentanyl powder nearly doubled. Last year, 30% of the fentanyl powder seized by DEA contained xylazine. Nearly all the methamphetamines sold in the United States today is manufactured in Mexico, and it is purer and more potent than in years past. The shift to Mexican-manufactured methamphetamine is evidenced by the dramatic decline in domestic clandestine lab seizures. The report provides in-depth profiles of the Sinaloa and Jalisco Cartels. These are transnational criminal organizations responsible for controlling much of the clandestine drug production, transportation routes, and smuggling corridors from Mexico into the United States.

While synthetic opioids and methamphetamines are currently the most concerning threats, the report discusses trends for a range of illicit drugs, including cannabis, psychoactive substances, and illicit use of controlled prescription drugs. The report also discusses the intersection of drug trafficking and illicit finance, and the DEA’s response to the nation’s current drug threats.

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