Friday, March 23, 2018

Tell me again about the public trust (foreign museums edition)

Rio de Janeiro's Modern Art Museum is selling a Jackson Pollock.

The National Gallery of Canada is selling a Chagall.

Are these sales "ethical"?  How should a member in good standing of the Deaccession Police feel about them?

Well, first she would need to know if Brazil and Canada have their own versions of the AAMD and AAM and, if so, whether they have "codes of ethics" and, if so, what they say about the sales.

Once she has all of that information, then our Deaccession Police officer can have an opinion on the matter.

It's an interesting kind of ethics.