Hi all...
I posted this a month ago, and I apologize for bringing it up again but...I
have been doing research on the Maryland Institute College of Art's (MICA)
decision to sell part or all of an extensive collection of 19th-C French art
to boost its endowment.  Because the collection has been stored, curated,
interpreted by two museums (the Baltimore Art Museum and Walters Art Gallery)
for 60+ years, MICA took the issue to a circuit court to determine whether
they had a right to sell the collection, which the board deemed as "having no
educational value" for their students.

At first, I thought the issue was ethics of deaccessioning a collection at
the university museum level.  However, a kind soul in Maryland said that MICA
did not have a museum and thus, MICA believed that they should not be held to
the same standards as museums (but can't a university be considered a
non-profit org?).  I then realized that the real issue is extended loans and
what can happen when a lender decides to re-claim their objects.

So: some questions relating to universities/university museums: if MICA does
sell parts or all of the collection, is it ethical to use the proceeds for
boosting endowment, even though the school does not have a museum?  Should
MICA compensate the other two museums for the time and expense invested in
the collection during their care?  Where does "public trust" fit into this
setting? How often should borrowers touch bases with their lenders in
extended loans?  Lastly, when a museum has borrowed object for more than 20
years (assuming that the owner is not keeping good documentation of the
loan), does that museum have a right to terminate the owner's rights to the
object and gain its title?

Any help would really be valuable in my research, and info. will be compiled
into a term paper on extended loans.  Also, if anyone associated with the
Baltimore Museum of Art and the Walters Art Gallery are list members, can we
talk?  Please respond to me directly, as this topic may not be relevant to
everyone on the list.

Thanks in advance for your input!!

Christine Fogarty
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Museum Studies Program
San Francisco State University