Ethics and Art Museums

The modern concept of the museum was born in 19th-century Europe. By the 20^th century in the U.S., its mission as an institution was predictable: to collect, preserve, and protect what it contained, whether modern art or ancient artifacts. The word “museum” has too often been used to describe a faded elitist palace where unseen things gather dust, forgotten and retired. In recent years, that concept has changed.

American Association of Museums has ethical guidelines pertaining to the borrowing of objects and lender involvement.

Philanthropy for the arts can be traced back to the church, aristocracy and academia. The church and aristocracy provided the economic foundation for culture while the academia set the standards for what comprised noteworthy art. Often these two entities were in solidarity. A shift began to occur in France in the 1880s when the dealer-critic system began growing and replacing the academia’s Salon system. Artists were unable to adapt to the rigid institutional aesthetic rules and sought modern systems to promote and exhibit their art. The Impressionists did not like the Salon and its narrow principles. They moved in a new direction and welcomed art market/ business arrangement. Dealers could restrict paintings to only the “right” collectors, and this practice created an elite class of private collectors in Europe.

Primary art centers: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, London, Paris, Berlin, and Frankfurt.

Week 7: Ethics and Art Museums, Art Collectors