Rich Art Collection Moving to Philly

Rich Art Collection Moving to Philly

By DAVID B. CARUSO, Associated Press Writer

PHILADELPHIA - One of the nation's richest troves of Impressionist and
Postimpressionist art is moving to downtown Philadelphia now that its
trustees have won court permission to leave their hard-to-visit
suburban gallery, a legacy of the collection's eccentric founder.


Trustees of the Barnes Foundation had argued for two years that they
should be allowed to move the collection of Renoirs, Cezannes,
Matisses and Picassos because decades of limited attendance and high
costs in Lower Merion Township have nearly bankrupted the foundation.


On Monday, Montgomery County Judge Stanley Ott agreed, saying a new
facility more accessible to tourists in the heart of Philadelphia
might be the only way to save the foundation. Other possible
solutions, including selling land and lesser art from the collection,
wouldn't raise more than $20 million, he said.


"History and the evidence presented at these hearings showed this
amount would not halt the foundation's downward financial spiral," he
wrote.


The current gallery is loved for its intimacy, but is difficult to
visit because of restrictions imposed by township officials and the
will of the late Dr. Albert Barnes, who made a fortune in
pharmaceuticals and medical supplies.


He opened his 23-room gallery in 1925 to display Impressionist
masterpieces and thousands of other paintings, African carvings,
Navajo textiles, Greek and Roman ceramics and other pieces.


When he died in a 1951 car crash, his will specified that the
collection be kept forever in Lower Merion, paintings never be sold or
moved, admission be strictly limited, and his endowment be invested
only in conservative, low-yielding government securities.


The collection is open to the public only on Friday, Saturday and
Sunday, and no more than 400 people may visit each day. Tickets are
available only by reservation and sell out months in advance. Onsite
parking is limited and the township won't let visitors park on the
street.


Traditionalists fought the move, saying it would destroy a unique
setting and violate Barnes' wish that the collection be primarily used
as a teaching tool for the foundation's art school.


Ott acknowledged that some would see the move to Philadelphia as "an
outrageous violation of the donor's trust," but said archival
materials convinced him that Barnes expected the collection to have
greater exposure than it has received.


Three philanthropies promised to help raise $100 million for a new
gallery near the Philadelphia Museum of Art plus $50 million to
establish an endowment if the court approved the move.


Mayor John F. Street's office said a site should be picked by the end
of the week.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=487&e=2&u=/ap/barnes_foundation

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