Monday, March 16, 2009

"Arguing against a straw man to further the strict constructionist view of deaccessioning ..." (UPDATED)

That's The Art Market Monitor's take on Christopher Knight's LA Times piece over the weekend, which discussed an example of "smart" deaccessioning: "this example ... does nothing to address the real issue of recent months–and likely to re-emerge in years to come–how should institutions in extremis deal with the pressing issue of art as an asset."

And, on the subject of institutions in extremis, here's the latest example: "The Museum of Contemporary Art Denver is eliminating four of its 20 full-time positions and trimming benefits."

UPDATE: More on institutions in extremis from Richard Lacayo.