BlogBack: Michael Rush, Rose Art Museum’s Director, on His CBS-TV Soundbite

Michael Rush showing CBS-TV's Martha Teichner around the Rose Art Museum, aired yesterday

Michael Rush, embattled director of Brandeis University's beleaguered art museum, responds to yesterday's post, in which I criticized his "million-dollar babble" during his conversation with correspondent Martha Teichner on CBS-TV's Sunday Morning show:

I respect your passion about sale of artworks. I share this passion. As you know, things that get printed or aired often do not comply with our best intentions. I spent more than two hours at the Rose with CBS Sunday Morning and this one piece of offhanded monetary discussion, which occurred in a parenthetical manner, was what they chose to run with.

All the many, many other things I said did not make the final cut...and, I assure you, I said numerous strong things about the horror of the university's decision to sell artwork. And regarding the evaluation of the collection to begin with, this was totally done within the spirit of believing that deeper awareness of the cultural, historical, and, yes, monetary value of this collection would speak clearly to the university and enhance its pride in the collection and desire to both protect it and have it seen more. (At the time, we were trying to raise money for new storage and exhibition space.) Never for a second did we remotely believe that this crass decision would result.

Many, many institutions speak often of their "great first edition valued at $2 million" or "original manuscript valued at $10 million." These valuations can be sources of great pride and enhancements toward protection. The fact that this ill begotten decision came form Brandeis was NOT based on our evaluations of the collection.

The university had attempted this type of measure before but was stopped by a very influential University Trustee, Dr. Hank Foster, whose wife, Lois, has been involved with us deeply for more than 30 years. Together they endowed essential museum operations and, indeed, the main contemporary exhibition space of the Rose is called the Lois Foster Wing.

Hank died this year. I truly believe that the absence of his wise and supportive voice contributed to the timing of this sorry decision. I really am on your side on this issue of selling artwork.

We'll likely hear more from Michael (as well as from the battle-ready Rose Family) later today, at his museum's symposium on "Preserving Trust: Art and the Art Museum Amidst Financial Crisis," which you can view live here (Mar. 2 date on that webpage is wrong), from 6:30-8 p.m.