The distribution of the gifts, which will become part of the institutions’ permanent collections, is being managed by the National Art Collections Fund, which has a wide knowledge of the collections and funding policies of museums and galleries nationwide.
It has worked together with the Saatchi Gallery on drawing up a list of likely candidates for a gift and then asked them to select the work or works they would like.
The terms of the gift include a commitment by the recipients to retain the works of art in their collections in perpetuity and to keep them in good condition.
The works include pieces by Jordan Baseman, Marcus Taylor, Richard Woods, and Katherine Dowson among others; ten works have been given to the Aberdeen Art Gallery, two to the Leeds City Art Gallery, eight to Paisley Museum and Art Galleries, one to the Glynn Vivian Art Gallery in Swansea, two to Swindon Museum and Art Gallery, 12 to the Ulster Museum in Belfast and four to the New Art Gallery in Walsall.
Charles Saatchi acknowledged the value of the NACF’s support in making the gift: “We are delighted to make this gift through the Art Fund, which plays such a vital role in helping the nation’s art galleries build their collections. We hope to continue to make gifts to both the Arts Council Collection and the Art Fund, to enable the work of young British artists to be seen and held in public collections across the country.”
The NACF has also been instrumental in managing the distribution of other works on behalf of private donors, most notably the 58 baroque paintings in the proposed bequest of art historian and connoisseur Sir Denis Mahon.
