If Dealers Want to Sell an Artwork to a Museum, They May Have to Find the Buyer Themselves
ARTnews reports that some museum curators increasingly express interest in acquiring artworks but ask dealers to find collectors to fund the purchase, effectively shifting fundraising onto galleries. New York dealer Sonia Dutton described this dynamic after a curator praised “Night Drawing,” Boston artist Rose deSmith Greenman’s debut New York exhibition, but indicated the museum might not have funds—despite works priced up to $17,000 and averaging about $4,000. A New York dealer with nearly four decades of experience and a former gallery director, both speaking anonymously, said such requests are not uncommon and reflect tight museum budgets. Collector Michael Hort said he receives dealer calls proposing he support museum acquisitions as often as once a month, attributing the frequency partly to the growth in the number of museums, artists, and dealers.
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This story was covered in Museum Power Shifts and Restitution Manhunts