LA financier Eli Broad has shocked a number of museums, mostly LACMA, with his recent decision to donate his 2,000 works of modern art to his own personal Broad Art Foundation.
Long assumed to be at the top of the list of potential recipients was the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, which next month is to open the $56 million Broad Contemporary Art Museum, a building designed by Renzo Piano and financed by Mr. Broad, as the centerpiece of its redesigned campus on Wilshire Boulevard. NYT
Coming on the eve of the opening, the decision is a potential embarrassment for the Los Angeles museum. It was widely criticized in 2001 for mounting a major exhibition of works from Mr. Broad’s collection without having secured a promised gift of the works, an act that is prohibited at many prominent art institutions because it can increase the market value of the collection.
The decision also has far-reaching implications for the way museums interact with big donors. In recent years a dizzying rise in art prices and an abiding institutional thirst for acquisitions have given well-heeled donors more influence over what a museum buys and puts on its walls.
Mr. Broad has long been a dominant force on the Los Angeles art scene, helping to found museums and serving on their boards, overseeing fund-raising for the construction of the landmark Disney Hall, which was designed by Frank Gehry, and spurring a drive to revitalize downtown.
3 Comments
I am curious if Broad will either build a new museum to house his collection or have it housed at the new Piano building, but currated by his own foundation.
Either way, LACMA should be greatful for the $$$ that Broad has given for the Piano museum
Mdler,
From what i understand he will do neither.
The reason for the new foundation and his new non-gifting is because he has such a massive collection (between his foundation and personal collection) that no musuem can or will committ to showing the whole thing. Thus he decided that better to keep the art at the foundation which will then loan the art out to various musuems (including the LACMA, which as he said in the article will be the favorite for borrowing)
namhenderson
that sounds fine with me. Who really cares who owns what as long as it gets shown to the public. I understand that the museums want the prestige (as well as the $$$ value) of the works to their name, but for the average Joe, it really doesnt matter if LACMA or the Broad foundation owns the work, as long as it is shown.
It is probably better that the Broad Foundation owns the works anyways. I am sure that Broad will endow his foundation so that the works will be taken care of properly
Block this user
Are you sure you want to block this user and hide all related comments throughout the site?
Archinect
This is your first comment on Archinect. Your comment will be visible once approved.