At 07:02 PM 4/9/96 EDT, you wrote:
>    I was very pleased with Mr. Thompson's comments.  I was an
>    antiques dealer before I came on the museum scene.  I worked with
>    many collectors who, out of a passion, built stunning private
>    collections.  My exposure to them reminds me of people like the
>    Rockefellers, who have not only built fantastic and important
>    collections, but have shared those collections with the world--as
>    most private collectors I have met are willing to do over time.
>    May I also add that many museums have great collections because of
>    the efforts of a single dedicated collector.
>
>    What gives anyone the right to tell a person that
>    they no longer "should" own their life's work and
>    accomplishments?  And why is it that when so many museums today
>    cannot even care for the collections that they own, do they still
>    demand to hold more?
>
>    The whole thing has perplexed me for years.
>
>
>    John Handley
>    San Francisco
>
Many of us who have replied to this situation are not claiming that the
gentleman in question had no right to collect or own the material...HE
was searching for an answer as to what to do with it NOW that HE cannot
continue to hold onto it. The implication that I read into his posting was
that the value of his collection ought to somehow mean that some
museum/library somewhere ought to buy it....and that the lack of response on
our collective parts was a FAILING on our part.

If a collector has a passion and the resources to develop a valuable
collection AND the insight, long-term vision AND resources to make a
workable plan for the collection's care after he/she is gone, then indeed
the world and society benefits from this special gift. But I and others have
had more than our share of instances where a fine collection has been built
up and the owner hasn't a clue what to do with it when the time comes to
divest. Their passion and dedication certainly tell them that the collection
as a whole is more valuable than individual pieces, but the marketplace
often behaves in just the opposite way.

Of course there are examples of whole collections being bought, either by
individuals, corporations, or non-profits. But the situation has to be right
and the resources available at the right time.

I would love to acquire this collection for our archives, but our resources
and fund-raising priorities just do not match this current opportunity.

As to the comments made by another lister as to the preservation advantages
and disadvantages between individual ownership and institional
ownership....the variables are many in that equation. The owner of the
current Wright archives collection says that he has tried to make the
collection available to researchers all along. Other private owners do not.
AND I have done enought AAM MAP II surveys to know that many institutions
cannot care for what they have.

Tough calls all the way around.
Edward Jay Pershey
Curator of Urban & Industrial History
Director of Education
Western Reserve Historical Society
10825 East Boulevard
Cleveland, OH 44106