Driven to Defy Donor Intent?Driven to Defy Donor Intent?
The Rose Art Museum at Brandeis University in Waltham, Mass., has built an impressive collection of contemporary artists since it opened in 1961. But now, on the floor-to-ceiling glass wall at its entry is tacked another sort of display: poster boards, some shaped like tombstones, with scrawled in magic marker. These are physical manifestations of the outrage generated by a Jan. 26, 2009, announcement
March 1, 2009
Karen Donovan
The Rose Art Museum at Brandeis University in Waltham, Mass., has built an impressive collection of contemporary artists since it opened in 1961. But now, on the floor-to-ceiling glass wall at its entry is tacked another sort of display: poster boards, some shaped like tombstones, with “R.I.P.” scrawled in magic marker.
These are physical manifestations of the outrage generated by a Jan. 26, 2009, announcement that Brandeis' trustees had voted unanimously to close the museum and sell holdings valued at $350 million.
“INTEGRITY FOR SALE. All MUST GO! Accepting all offers,” reads one of the student protests. The politics continue at the front desk, where the museum, locked in a battle with university trustees, has put a sign wai...
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