The Met and the Art Smuggler
Hyperallergic features an interview by art-crime scholar Erin L. Thompson with journalist Matthew Campbell about Campbell’s book The Man Who Stole the Gods, which chronicles British antiquities trafficker Douglas Latchford and the looting of Cambodian (Khmer) sacred sculpture over roughly four decades. The discussion focuses on the violence and coercion involved in removing religious objects and on how Western collectors and institutions—including the Metropolitan Museum of Art—acquired works linked to trafficking networks. The piece is presented alongside other editorial content in the same edition, including an excerpt from artist William Kentridge’s new book describing his studio practice and reflections such as “the studio is a safe space for stupidity.” The article frames Latchford’s activities as emblematic of broader patterns in the illicit antiquities trade and museum collecting.
From This Briefing
This story was covered in AI Unearths Secrets, Museums Face Reckoning