The Met, in Absentia

There's a museum meeting coming to town, and not just any museum meeting. The Association of Art Museums' 100th anniversary conference opens Thursday, and is expected to be the largest gathering of museum-types anywhere, ever. Wouldn't it be a perfect time to hear from the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Director Philipe de Montebello? After all, he just engineered the deal to return, or trade, looted art in the Met's collection to Italy. He's also been sort of cranky about the way American museums are being pressured by the outside world. Unfortunately, word from organizers is that de Montebello apparently isn't going to make the AAM. We're waiting for the Met to tell us why.