Brandeis University, which had faced legal and ethical challenges over deaccessioning plans agreed in 2009, believes it can now raise money without closing the renowned Rose Art Museum.
Named after Ed and Bertha Rose, who gave $1m to start the Contemporary and Modern art collection in 1961, it ranks as the largest collection of its type outside New York City.
The talks between Sotheby’s director Lisa Dennison and the university (whose endowment, once above $700m, has shrivelled during the recession) started a year ago. Diana Phillips, Sotheby’s spokeswoman, said: “We wrote to Brandeis offering a range of suggestions and we are pleased to be working with them to explore alternatives to a sale.”
Leasing deals are not unknown – the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, for example, leased a large number of its prized Monets in 2004-05 to the Bellagio Casino in Las Vegas – but it is thought to be the first time an auctioneer has brokered such a deal.
The terms of the agreement, including which works could be available or what sum a leasing deal would generate, have not been made public.
Auction rival Christie’s did the $350m valuation of the Rose collection for insurance purposes in 2007, with the proviso that if the Rose sold anything within five years, they would be the sales agent. This deal still stands – as does the controversial vote taken by Brandeis trustees in January 2009 to sell the collection – but the hope is that this will now not be necessary.
“The Sotheby’s news is huge, it’s a great step forward for us. I hope it’s the solution to a difficult situation,” Rose’s director Roy Dawes told reporters.
