Tough Economy Offers Opportunities for Art Museums, Nasher Director Says
Thursday, December 11, 2008
The art market is feeling the effects of the sour economy -- and that might actually benefit some art museums, says the director of Duke University’s art museum.
Financial woes in the marketplace are resulting in the correction of inflated art prices, says Kimerly Rorschach, the Mary D.B.T. and James H. Semans Director of the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke. Those lower price tags are attracting museums that are trying to build their collections, especially when it comes to contemporary art.
Rorschach, a member of the Association of Art Museum Directors, noticed the trend last week while attending Art Basel Miami Beach, one of the largest contemporary art fairs in the world.
“In Miami, I noticed that more art museums were able to go shopping. Museums have funds that are restricted to the purchase of art, and now their money goes a lot farther than before. Art dealers seemed more willing to negotiate, and we saw less of the wild speculation that drove up art prices in recent years,” Rorschach says.
