2008 - Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden

In the National Art Museum of China, Beijing: (from left to right) Yang Jiechi, Foreign Minister of the People’s
Republic of China; Dr. Frank-Walter Steinmeier, German Foreign Minister; Prof. Dr. Martin Roth, Director-General
of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden; Fan Di´an, Director of the National Art Museum of China, Beijing
mEssAgE OF gREETiNg FROm
DR FRANk-WALTER sTEiNmEiER,
FEDERAL miNisTER FOR FOREigN
AFFAiRs
When looking at this Annual Report from the Dresden
State Art Collections, some of you may ask why it includes
a piece written by the German Foreign Minister. What do
museums in Germany have to do with foreign policy?
My answer is “a great deal!” The Dresden State Art Collections,
the oldest and second largest museum grouping
in the country, is now a real global player in the world of
museums and serves as a cultural beacon for Germany on
numerous continents. You not only receive guests from
around the world here in Dresden, but are yourselves active
abroad, participating in exhibitions and cooperating with
foreign scholars, attending international conferences and
events. It is these bridges formed by cultural exchange that
provide the connections which are so beneficial in politics
and business. However, culture is much more than a foot
in the door. By means of cultural exchange we not only
showcase our country abroad but, by constantly engaging
in dialogue with others, we are also caused to perpetually
re-examine our own identity.
Under the stewardship of Professor Martin Roth, the
Dresden State Art Collections has in the past few years
cooperated closely with the Federal Foreign Office on a
considerable number of projects, including events in
places such as Jackson, Mississippi in the southern USA,
New York, Rome, Kobe and Tokyo, London, Versailles and
Moscow. These places are but a few of the many that have
witnessed impressive and successful projects. In 2008, the
Dresden State Art Collections stepped up its international
activities yet further. I especially recall “China in Dresden
in China”. This was a project with a long preparation period,
which cost years of work, and which resulted in fabulous
exhibitions in both Beijing and Dresden. Another
highlight for me was opening the twin exhibition on
Gerhard Richter and Living Landscapes at the National
Museum of China in Beijing, something I did jointly with
Professor Roth.
All of this is foreign policy in the best of senses. On my
travels my interlocutors have told me time and again just
how great interest in their countries is in German culture,
and in German museums in particular. Nurturing this interest
and inspiring young people especially, wherever they
are in the world, to learn about our ideas is not just an
important goal of our museums’ activities, but also one of
the primary tasks of the Foreign Minister.
Dr Frank-Walter Steinmeier
Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs
Page 16: The exhibition “Unter Göttern und
Menschen” (Among Gods and Men) by the
Museo Nacional del Prado and the Dresden
Skulpturensammlung at the Prado, Madrid
1