Hartwig Fischer, who took over the directorship of the British Museum from Neil MacGregor two years ago, has no decoration on the plain blue walls of his office. But the blankness of his working space radiates through his personal manner: he is warm and friendly, but oddly remote. It’s entirely out of the question.” The British Museum is the most visited attraction in Britain, with 5.9m visitors last year. It’s an intriguing time to be considering the renewal of the British Museum – one of the world’s few so-called “encyclopedic museums” – as Fischer puts it, “a museum of the world for the world”. It’s there as a space to think, reflect, debate.” It is true that Fischer could hardly be more European.

Source: The Guardian April 13, 2018 15:11 UTC