§ Mr. DalyellTo ask the Minister for the Arts if he will ask the trustees of the Museum of Mankind to mount an exhibition and seminar to promote Amer-Indian art from the Brazilian rain forest.
§ Mr. LuceThe exhibitions policy of the British museum, of which the Museum of Mankind is a part, is a matter for the museum's director and trustees and is not something in which I should intervene.
I understand, however, that between 1985 and 1987 the museum mounted a major exhibition entitled "The Hidden Peoples of the Amazon", which included two thirds of the Amazonian collections of featherwork, costumes, pottery and other everyday artifacts, many of which show a strong artistic inspiration. The exhibition was supported by a series of films and lectures at which contemporary environmental and cultural problems were discussed.
In 1978 the museum hosted a smaller exhibition on the art of the Brazilian Indians and it continues to provide many schools, specialists and general inquiries with information about the native peoples of Amazonia.