The Changing United Nations: Institute of International Studies, UC Berkeley
See also Sir Brian's biography.
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Thank you so much, David, for that very kind introduction. I cannot imagine a more appropriate introducer for this occasion, because it is largely due to your family that the United Nations is here in New York. In 1948 the UN, like the Flying Dutchman, was wandering around in search of a home. Many sites had been offered but none were suitable, and at the very last moment the Rockefeller family came up with the site on Turtle Bay on the East River. In an imperfect world, this was the best possible site for growing, diversified, enormously complicated world organization. As I said the other day, the relationship between New York City and the UN is like a sound but very long marriage. There are all sorts of ups and downs and the parties get fed up with each other from time to time, but they have an overwhelming common interest in working together and staying together, as well as a growing mutual regard and respect.
It should be easy to describe one international organization to another, but
the International Council [of the Museum of Modern Art] is pretty straightforward by comparison with the UN.
I think the Council could give the UN a number of very important pointers to
doing better; for example, mutual respect, common concerns, a wonderful,
creative curiosity about what is going on in the world, a basic respect for
diversity and for new ideas, good behavior on buses, and above all, imagination
and a positive interest in the future. These are the qualities that any
international organization must have today if it is going not only to survive,
but actually to do some good.
There is more of a connection between the International Council, the Museum of Modern Art, and the world organization than may be obvious at first sight. When Dag Hammarskjöld, the second Secretary-General of the UN, addressed the Museum on its 25th anniversary, he said "Modern art teaches us to see by forcing us to use our senses, our intellect, and our sensibility to follow it on its road of exploration. It makes us seers and explorers. These we must be if we are to prevail." I shall be talking more about Dag Hammarskjöld later, but these words do establish a general truth, not only for modern art but for the whole human effort to move towards a better future.
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