Cash-strapped Brandeis University, which caused a ruckus last year in the museum world by proposing to close its Rose Art Museum and sell its colllection of moderist gems to pay the bills, is proposing to cause a ruckus by renting it out. Using the auction house Sotheby’s as broker, the school plans to loan selections from its collection to the highest bidder, hoping to stave off their politically untenable outright sale. Quoted in the Boston.com article about the Rose, Houston Museum of Fine Arts Director Peter Marzio defends the novel deal, saying that the museum community "will be against anything except the status quo, but Brandeis has to set its priorities and decide how the museum fits into the long-term purpose of the university. They would be fools not to explore this."
Rent-a-Museum
