BlogBack: Honolulu Docent on Single-Collector Exhibitions

A museum curator, who unfortunately would not allow me to quote his comments, sent me a well argued e-mail suggesting that my objections to museums' mounting single-collector exhibitions may make sense for large, prestigious museums, but are less persuasive for smaller museums that have a greater need for these shows and the possible art donations that can ensue.

Similarly, the Modern Kicks blog said this in a thoughtful post about the controversy over the sales at Christie's of the Hartman jades that had been exhibited at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts:

I still think there's value in displaying privately owned work, but it's good to remember these cautionary tales: You hold your exhibition and you takes your chances.

A young docent at the Honolulu Academy of Arts responds here to my recent post about the $41-million Hartman sales, in which I asserted that "a museum should not mount a show devoted to a single-owner collection unless that collection is pledged to the museum."

Phyllis Nakasone writes:

How can museums avoid being used as prestigious showcases by profit-minded private collectors?

If the stuff is junk, the public isn't stupid. Let the museum take the punches. They'll learn. Besides, museums aren't all sacred places.