If museums use deaccession funds more broadly — even to survive a crisis like the pandemic — there may be no going back. An online petition calling on Met leaders “to resist any attempts to sell off the art the Met holds in the public trust” has collected nearly 25,000 signatures. In a recent op-ed, Campbell outlined his fear that the well-intentioned move by the Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD) will become permanent and will undermine its authority. [and] the premise that museum art collections are not taxable assets could be overturned.”Campbell also notes that deaccessioning is not a silver bullet. It could be exactly what some art museums really need.”Many smaller museums have avoided deaccessioning because they fear getting entangled in controversy, Yerkovich said.

Source: Washington Post March 08, 2021 18:47 UTC