Brandeis' art sell-off: Is there no other way?COLUMN: IN OUR OPINION; EDITORIAL FOOTNOTE Brandeis University Brandeis University, at Waltham, Mass.; coeducational; chartered and opened 1948. Although Brandeis was founded by members of the American Jewish community, the university operates as an independent, nonsectarian institution. in Waltham, beset by rising costs and an endowment decimated by the financial crisis, has shocked the art world by voting to close its Rose Art Museum. While there are no easy answers to the university's cash-flow problems, the prospect of breaking up the acclaimed collection of post-World War II art and dispersing the pieces to the highest bidders HIGHEST BIDDER, contracts. He who, at an auction, offers the greatest price for the property sold. 2. The highest bidder is entitled to have the article sold at his bid, provided there has been no unfairness on his part. around the globe is, frankly, appalling. Launched modestly in 1961, the Rose grew in stature along with the post-war art in which it specialized. Although attendance is relatively small, paintings from the collection of 6,000 works - including important early works by Roy Lichtenstein, Jasper Johns Noun 1. Jasper Johns - United States artist and proponent of pop art (born in 1930) Johns , Robert Rauschenberg
Robert Milton Ernest Rauschenberg (b. October 22 1925 in Port Arthur, Texas) is an American artist who came to prominence in the 1950s transition from Abstract , Andy Warhol Noun 1. Andy Warhol - United States artist who was a leader of the Pop Art movement (1930-1987) Warhol and others - are in demand for exhibitions nationally and in major European venues. Indeed, the collection tracks the chaotic course of American art American art, the art of the North American colonies and of the United States. There are separate articles on American architecture, North American Native art, pre-Columbian art and architecture, Mexican art and architecture, Spanish colonial art and architecture, in the latter half of the 20th century. In that sense, the whole vastly exceeds in value the sum of its parts. The collection is valued at up to $400 million, although a sell-off likely would fall far short of that in the current depressed art market. The decision to close the museum appears to be irrevocable, but it is unclear whether the sale can proceed any time soon. The attorney general's office, which has some oversight authority because of the museum's nonprofit status, first must determine whether such a sale would violate the terms of the donations. Meanwhile, Brandeis may be able to formulate an answer to the question an appalled art world is asking: Is there no other way? |
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