A virtual campaign for preserving British art in Britain

The art critic Ben Macintyre has invested £5 in a virtual brushstroke of a painting by Turner, 'The Blue Rigi', for sale online. Last year the painting was purchased by a private foreign buyer, thought to be American, for £5.8 million. The British Culture Minister, David Lammy, placed a temporary export bar on the Turner and now enough cash has to be raised by March 20th to match the sale price and keep the painting in Britain. "There will always be a conflict between the demands of commerce and those of culture", comments the journalist. "The free market in art cannot be prevented from operating like any another, and nor should it, but there are numerous (though expensive) ways to tip the balance in favour of our own museums. For a start, any individual donating art to the nation should receive income tax relief of at least 40 %. In France 90 %relief is available ... ."

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