CoA calls out PCGG for deterioration of seized Marcos paintings

The Commission on Audit has called out the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) about the deterioration of the ill-gotten artwork sequestered from the Marcos family.

In its recently-released 2016 annual audit report, the CoA urged the PCGG to take steps to prevent further deterioration of the assets and locate nine paintings that were missing from the Metropolitan Museum of Manila and the Malacañang Antique Houses.

“Measures to preserve and protect sequestered assets are not in place resulting in missing, faster deterioration and damage of artworks,” read the CoA report.

This was contrary to the agency’s mandate under Section 3(b) of Executive Order No. 1, series of 1986, to prevent the destruction of the ill-gotten properties sequestered from the family and cronies of late dictator Ferdinand Marcos.

The sequestered assets are included in Civil Case No. 0002 (Republic of the Philippines vs. Ferdinand Marcos, et al), which is still pending at the Sandiganbayan. Although not all were recorded in the PCGG’s books, some items turned up in the inventory lists for 2008 and 2012.

READ: Paintings from Marcos art collection seized in San Juan raid

Missing paintings

Upon inventory on May 31 and June 1, 2016, however, the CoA found that three Russian iconography paintings have gone missing from the storage room of the Metropolitan Museum.

Museum personnel told the CoA of the difficulty in tracking down the missing items because the former storage keeper had already resigned.

Likewise, the CoA only chanced upon 17 paintings at the Malacañang Antique Houses. Six paintings listed as “missing” in the 2012 inventory report could still not be found.

Scratches and molds

Meanwhile, the paintings and artworks still kept in storage at the Metropolitan Museum face preservation issues.

The Yugoslavian Naifs—paintings consisting of 191 pieces stored in one-layer and two-layer wood racks—are still in relatively good condition.

However, most of the pieces have smudges on the glass, scratches and residue on the frames, dirt on the velvet outer matting, and mold and insect infestation on the backing tape.

Some of the paintings even have dirt and scratches on the surface due to humidity, temperature and exposure, and at least one has cracks on the paint. All in all, the CoA reported that only two out of the 191 pieces “appear to have no damage at all.”

But, the Naifs fare better than the 117 Russian Iconography paintings, which the CoA said was “not in good condition.”

Some of the Russian paintings have deteriorated so much that they have become noticeably faded due to the lack of glass casings and frames. There were even molds and fungi inside the paintings due to moisture.

This was beside the usual problem of scratches, chip-offs and dents on the frames, and holes in the backing tape chewed out by cockroaches and woodbugs. Unlike the Yugoslavian Naifs placed in wood racks, the Russan icons were “placed on the floor, leaning against the walls.”

Nine pieces of Italian mosaics were also deemed “not in good condition,” as most of the frames have scratches and chip-offs; these were also placed on the floor.

Meanwhile, the varnish coating of 207 Russian lacquerwares had moistened due to humidity in the storage room, resulting in stuck lids and difficulty in replacing the glassine paper.

The Metropolitan Museum artworks were not covered with Acknowledgement Receipt of Equipment to “determine the person accountable for the proper care and safekeeping thereof.”

The CoA did not have adverse findings on the condition of two Italian Master paintings by 18th-century painter Giuseppe Zais displayed by the Metropolitan Museum, as well as the 17 artworks at the Malacañang Antique Houses. All of these were deemed in good condition.

CoA’s recommendations

To address the problem with the sequestered assets, the CoA recommended that PCGG officials be required to coordinate with the two museums to investigate the whereabouts of the missing items.

It also urged the issuance of Property Acknowledgement Receipts for the artworks to determine accountability, as well as the provision of suitable storage racks for the paintings placed on the floor and the conduct of regular maintenance.

“If feasible, [the PCGG should] coordinate/consult with the museum’s experts on possible restoration on the framings/paintings/artworks stored thereat to prevent further deterioration and damage,” the CoA report read.