In my opinion you are correct to be cautious about this idea Katie. It essentially puts a price tag on museum collections. Since the museum's good name is being used by the auction house, all the explaining in the world will not guard against purchasers saying they bought such and such from or at the museum. The fact that it is a government agency may add another layer of caution, especially if there are tax ramifications. Moreover, what will happen to the art sold if purchased privately? It will probably disappear from public record. Unfortunately the acceptance of deaccessioning by selling without preservation protections for an item's physical or document future happens when museums to engage in the practice. This completely contradicts a key charge of this aspect of collection care. Unless there are legal restrictions on collection ownerships most museums may do with them as they wish. This, of course, includes open market selling which is a common practice and one proponents use to verify their sales arguments.
In the public's eye the art may not have ever been owned by the museum but such a possession idea will be perceived no matter how loudly that fact will be corrected.
It sounds like the museum's governing body may be perfectly happy to engage in the auction. I can hear the gratitude voiced about the auction house. If this is true it is understandable as fiduciaries have limits on how much money they will provide for the museum they serve. (I would be interested to know if there is any relationship between the auction house and the board by the way). I have long said a museum's most important asset is its reputation.
Good luck
Steven Miller Doylestown, PA (Executive Director Emeritus Morris Museum Morristown, NJ)
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Steven Miller
Doylestown, PA
Executive Director Retired
Boscobel Restoration, Inc.
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Original Message:
Sent: 01-14-2016 12:58 PM
From: Katie Edwards
Subject: Selling Artwork by our Namesake at Fundraising Auction
Hi everyone,
I'm the Curator at City-owned Museum of work by Charles Umlauf (d. 1994), enjoying our 25th Anniversary year. For our 25th Anniv. gala auction, there is a suggestion to have work by Umlauf donated by a private gallery to the Museum, then auction it to the highest bidder, who would take it home. (We have always auctioned off works donated by contemporary artists and photographers whom we do not collect.) I'm uneasy with selling an Umlauf because 1.) it could appear we're selling an object from our collection [even if we carefully explain that the object was not our to begin with] and 2.) I'd prefer any new Umlauf sculpture to be donated to the Museum, not to be auctioned to a private collector. We want to avoid any appearance of conflict, while raising $ for the Museum. Can anyone with more experience in this realm direct me to resources?
With appreciation,
Katie
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Katie Edwards PhD
Curator
Umlauf Sculpture Garden & Museum
Austin TX
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