The question is discussed from various angles. Tacit recognition that an art object has rights underlies many heated arguments about the treatment or disposition of art works, ranging from the Elgin Marbles and Michelangelo's frescoes in the Sistine Chapel, to the more recent controversy about the painted surfaces of David Smith's metal sculptures. Laws protecting right of access imply an assumption that art objects should not disappear from the historical, cultural or social contexts that gave them their particular identity. Art objects deserve champions. Like all ideas, the merits of this one should be tested by open debate in the public arena and fairly judged. Who, then, can champion these champions and provide such an impartial forum, asks the author.