Boston museum under fire for 'renting' Monets to Las Vegas casino gallery

[kskiska]

It is easy to find the quietest place among the clattering slot machines and gaudy glitz of Las Vegas.

Just before the enormous billboard announcing Elton John's residency at Caesar's Palace, opposite the scaled-down replica of the Eiffel Tower, is the imposing grandeur of the Bellagio hotel and casino.

Enter the Bellagio's lavish foyer, head past the slot machines and gaming tables, and follow the signs for the wedding chapels.

Just past the ice cream parlour is a haven of good taste, a bastion against Las Vegas's rampant commercialism: an exhibition of paintings by the 19th century French artist Claude Monet.

(snip)

The venerable Boston Museum of Fine Arts, which has lent them, is accused of having sold out to commercialism and flouted national curatorial guidelines in the name of profit.

more…
http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1149139,00.html

[Muddleoftheroad]

1. What is the issue

The Bellagio was designed to be the gallery of casinos and founded this on the owner's own extensive art collection. THAT is the drawing card to the casino and art patrons who gamble are the most likely customers.

[Wickerman]

2. what a crying shame

that art would be available to those who would not otherwise trek across the world to see it.

[NashVegas]

4. Maybe Bill Bennet Needed a Reminder of Western Civ

Before he blew a load on the tables.

[Forkboy]

3. It's a fantastic museum

and if this is one of the ways they can make money to stay open I have no problems with it.

[PartyPooper]

5. Since Siegfried and Roy are no longer performing

this may be the best reason yet for me to return to Las Vegas. I love Impressionistic art!

Disclaimer:
BTW, I am saddened by Roy's accident. And, this post isn't a slam on either Roy, Siegfried, or the tiger. I saw their show in the fall of 2001. It was wonderful and memorable. And, we all miss them terribly.

:-(

[NashVegas]

6. Here's The Problem with It

But in the words of one critic, the Monets have not been loaned, they have been rented out.

Under the terms of the arrangement, the museum should make at least $1m (£530,000) from the expected 1,000 visitors a day during the run of seven and a half months. Admission is $15.

Most often the stuff travels around to other museums when the buildings that house the works are getting major renovations, or someone's putting some huge goodies up for auction and want to raise public interest.

The average museum charges 6-9 dollars admission (unless you're fortunate enough to pay a visit to the Clark Institute in Western Mass - 100% free). A family of 4 will then pay $24-$36 for admission. With a $60 cover, you're excluding the art from those who are curious but not dedicated. You're excluding the art from people who have to decide between cubed steak and prime rib for dinner.

Also, most museums have a variety of membership levels where from anything from $30-$60 you get year-round admission.

So now you've got a Bellagio putting up major dollars. The next museum that has an exhibit ready to move, they get to choose between the entity that pays a million, or serves the general community. Which do you choose?

[stopbush]

9. I live in Vegas, and I went to the Monet exhibit Thursday.

There were 5 of us - me, the wife, mom-in-law and our two kids, age 6 & 10 (they were the only minors attending). As we are Nevada residents, admission was only $12 each. We reserved tix for 1PM as the rest of the day was sold out. There was also a $10 tix master surcharge. As we were bringing kids, we had to have a print out of our purchase before we got there - the Bellagio generally doesn't allow under-18s unless they're guests or attending a function/going to a restaurant. As it turns out, no one checked on us or the kids at any time.

The exhibit was well attended but not at all crowded. I saw a number of walk-ups who hadn't reserved tix but bought them at the window. Basically, they limit the number of online sales so they can accommodate walk ups. We arrived at 12:30 and were allowed to enter immediately. In retrospect, we could have just walked up and purchased tix and saved the $10 surcharge. C'est la vie!

The exhibit is limited to 21 pictures and the tour includes a free audio wand that describes each picture. It was just the right length for the kids who listened to the whole thing and examined each painting. My son was particularly interested as we visited France when he was 7 - the exhibit contained 3 paintings of Antibes, including the old fort that now houses the Picasso Museum (which my son visited with his mom). We went back through a second time before leaving, just to drink it all in.

We get our culture in very small spurts here in Vegas, and as one who lived in NYC for years, I'm happy whenever we get something of this caliber. Sixty bucks compared to flying the clan to Boston is a no-brainer. If a few of the full-price guests of the Bellagio and other casinos visit, all the better. Las Vegas is struggling to come up with the $120-million needed to build a real live arts center to house the local orchestra and ballet company (the land is already set aside), and anything that begins to identify the city as something besides a mecca for gamblers, losers, prostitutes and their johns is OK by me.

Funny how some people criticize the arts for their mothballed approach to just about everything. Yet as soon as someone breaks the mold and gets an nice exhibit displayed outside the normal venues (thereby attracting a different crowd), everybody gets their panties in a wad.

Viva Las Vegas...et vive Monet!

On edit: BTW - the Bellagio Art Gallery offers a yearly membership @ $45 a person. They only have 2-3 shows per year though, so unless you want to make multiple trips, it isn't cost effective.

Further BTW - we also took the opportunity to view the Bellagio's spectacular flower garden conservatory show celebrating the Chinese New Year. My kids have been studying this in their school here, so it was a natural tie-in. Very well done.

We then hit the Bellagio's buffet for the best high-quality gorge fest on the Strip. Well worth the money. We didn't need dinner after that.

[Retrograde]

12. What art tainted with money?!

I can't believe it. Pure art tainted with commercialism? How long has this been going on? Since the Renaissance? Or before? Never mind.

Hate to break it to you, but artists have always depended on satisfying the taste of patrons who will support their work. If they're lucky, their tastes and the patrons mesh. If not - well, we've all heard of starving artists.

If you think museums are just in it for the art - well, can I interest you in a fine bridge?

Incidentally, the major San Francisco museums typically have one free day a month.

linda

[stopbush]

18. Maybe it's not the money that upsets them.

Maybe it's some kind of moral issue.

That's why museums around the world have been busy returning antiquities and other artwork to their country of origin. You know, artwork that was "appropriated" from those less-enlightened countries of origin back in the good old days.

What? You say they HAVEN'T been returning those antiquities? Never mind. I guess it's the money after all.

[DieboldMustDie]

7. The Boston MFA...

has tons of stuff they can't display for lack of room, so if they can raise some funds by renting them out, what the heck? By the way, I heard about this several days ago, so it's not exactly LBN. ;)

[maxsolomon]

13. monets don't gather dust

in any museum in the world.

the entire affair is just crass.

[Muddleoftheroad]

14. Why?

Because Monets MUST be viewed in a musuem? Sounds kind of snobby and elitist to me.

In my opinion, the Bellagio is worthy of support. It's a casino designed entirely on the concept of fine art and embraces culture along with business.

[buckeye1]

8. They whore the paintings to ...

support the museum. There were better times. Do you love the free market yet?

[Muddleoftheroad]

10. How is this whoring?

It's just another museum. Yes, it's part of a casino -- but a casino whose whole cachet is designed around being a place for fine art. Not really a bad idea if you ask me.

[Vogon_Glory]

11. Las Vegas Needs The Culchah

Having been to the Las Vegas strip and having driven around a lot of Las Vegas during my visits to the City on the Plain, I have to say that Las Vegas does need the culture.

While it would be ducky if the Boston Museum of Fine Arts had the popular support and the funds to display its art on its own premises with free admission to all, that's not going to happen, especially in these philistine, social-darwinist times. They do need to raise funds. So I can't really object to what the BMFA is doing.

Think of it as a foreign-aid program to the unenlightened. :-)

[bleedingheart]

15. Now if there were posters or fine reproductions of these pieces

would there be such a scandal...

No.

But put the original there and for some reason people have a fit???

[Lars39]

16. How many office buildings have *loaners* in them to impress clients

or add ambience? What's the difference between an insurance company and a casino? A brokerage firm and a casino? Why isn't there an outcry over fundraisers in museums? :shrug: :)

[Tracer]

17. I've never been to Las Vegas ...

... and never plan on going — there are hundred of places I'd rather visit.

However, I have absolutely no objection to the MFA renting out its Monets to the Bellagio. Why should I? I'm pleased that people in Las Vegas (and tourists also) will have a chance to see the paintings.

Museums cost money to run and the MFA has some rather big expansion plans in the works — and a few extra dollars will certainly help make the expansion possible.