One of the very first, if not the first, events due to go ahead once the UK’s pandemic restrictions are fully lifted is a two-dayer by the IAASF (International Arts and Antiquities Security Forum) next month, in Darlington. We spoke yesterday to the organiser, Andy Davis, of Trident Manor.
Andy had hoped to run it at the end of 2020, but the second lockdown put paid to that. Some speakers at the Mercure Darlington are from security, some from the cultural sector, which reflects previous IAASF conferences (such as the one at the Baltic, Gateshead, that we featured on the December 2016 edition of Professional Security magazine). Some have spoken at the IAASF before; such as the National Security Adviser for Arts Council England, William Brown. Others include Riyaz Somani, Head of Security for Imperial War Museums; Peter Houlis the north-easterner now a consultant (on security tech); the veteran consultant Stewart Kidd (speaking on his specialism, fire); and Simon Cham, the former Met Police man now at the physical security product manufacturer Warrior Doors.
As a sign of how international cultural protection is, the opening speaker – at 1pm on the Wednesday, June 23 – is Corrado Catesi, Interpol’s man on works of art. As a nod to how hard the arts, antiquities and culture have been hit by covid, the event is free for those from the heritage sectors. If you own fine art – even if you’re not a museum, but maybe at your corporate office you have a painting of the founder on a wall or a trophy in a cabinet – you might want to insure it, not only against theft but (flood or fire or malicious) damage. Hence a speaker on risk assessment, the former underwriter David Scully.
For more about the June 23 and 24 event, titled ‘Protecting Cultural Heritage in a Global Pandemic’, visit the Trident Manor website.
About Andy Davis
As the chair of the IAASF, he is chairing the event. He has ASIS’ CPP qualification and chairs the ASIS Cultural Properties Community. His firm offers training and advice under the ‘POT-E’ acronym – security covering the physical, operational, technical and educational. Visit www.tridentmanor.com.
More in the June print edition of Professional Security, on how Trident Manor worked just before and in the pandemic; and the security risks that Andy sees to the heritage and cultural sector as it re-opens; ‘the primary threat, from organised crime, remains’, Andy said.
Picture by Tim Rushton; Crich Tramway Museum, Derbyshire.
