ARTS NEWS: New snags in the Barnes Museum relocation

On Monday, Aug. 1, the Friends of the Barnes Foundation redoubled its efforts to keep the museum in place - hiring attorney Samuel Stretton to petition a Montgomery County court to re-open the case to determine the legality of the move.

options

ARTS NEWS: New snags in the Barnes Museum relocation

POSTED: Thursday, August 11, 2011, 3:00 PM

Earlier this summer, the Barnes Foundation closed its doors in preparation for its move to the Art Museum district. Before it becomes a fixture on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, however, opponents of the move are taking a final stand. The Friends of the Barnes Foundation (FOTBF), a citizens’ advocacy group, insists that the collection should not be touched. On Monday, Aug. 1, the organization redoubled its efforts — hiring attorney Samuel Stretton to petition a Montgomery County court to re-open the case to determine the legality of the move.

Established in 1922, the Barnes Foundation has long been housed in the former residence of Dr. Albert C. Barnes, a Philadelphia native who amassed one of the most extensive private holdings of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art in the world. Despising the Philadelphia elite, Barnes was determined to keep the collection out of the hands of the mainstream art establishment. He wanted it to serve primarily as a school and, in an indentured trust set up to govern the Foundation, stipulated that the art should never be removed from his home in Lower Merion.

After Barnes died in 1951, the Board of Trustees ran the Foundation according to this mandate. When the Barnes ran into financial difficulties in the mid-1990s, however, museum officials began looking for ways to raise money. One of the proposals set forth was the idea to move the gallery to downtown Philadelphia. Those in favor argue that Township regulations limiting the number of visitors to the site make it impossible for the Barnes to remain financially viable in Lower Merion. But opponents of the plan say this claim is unsubstantiated. They believe the issue has more to do with politics than economics — arguing that the proposal is motivated by a political desire to increase tourism to the city. According to Nick Tinari, one of the founders of Barnes Watch, a group allied with FOTBF, “supporters of the move actively thwarted raising money before they went into court so it looked like the funds weren’t available. But they were. There was plenty of money if you had the will to raise it.”

In 2004, Montgomery County court Judge Stanley Ott awarded the Foundation’s Board of Trustees permission to move the Barnes to a new location on the Parkway. But the opposition hasn’t given up just yet. Last Monday, Stretton appeared before Judge Ott to appeal the ruling. Stretton claims that former state Attorney General Michael Fisher — the only public official with standing to administer charitable trusts — failed to disclose a conflict of interest during the proceedings held between 2003 and 2004. According to the plaintiff, Fisher used his influence to strong-arm the Board into supporting the move. As evidence, he presented statements made by the former Attorney General in The Art of the Steal, a 2009 documentary chronicling the controversy over the move. In the documentary, Fisher states: “I don’t know that we were ever as direct as saying [to the Board] we can take this [the Barnes Foundation] away from you, […] but I had to explain to them that maybe the Attorney General’s office would have to take some action involving them that might have to change the complexion of the board. Whether I said that directly or I implied it, I think they got the message.”

At the same time, then-Governor Ed Rendell offered Lincoln University — a historically black college in Chester County, Pa with authority to appoint four out of five members of the Board — increased funding if the university agreed to go along with the proposed relocation. Judge Ott had no knowledge of these actions when he delivered his verdict in 2004, Stretton claims. This, in turn, could render his ruling invalid.

Beyond the specifics of the case, the petition has broader implications for the role of the state Attorney General in the administration of charitable trusts. Should the Attorney General merely serve as a supervisor in the oversight of charitable trusts? Or can he be an advocate in the case of competing interests? “They [the Attorney General’s office] say he can make up his mind whenever he wants,” said Stretton. “But in my mind he can’t. The Attorney General has an obligation to act in the public interest and if he has a position he has to disclose it. He did not do his job due to a conflict of interest and as a result the opposing viewpoint was not properly presented in earlier hearings.”

Judge Ott must now determine whether the Friends of the Barnes has standing to challenge his earlier ruling. If he decides in their favor, the case may be re-opened. “We gave it our best shot. Now we’re just waiting for a decision,” Stretton commented. In the meantime, construction is still underway on the new gallery slated to open early next year.

(clare.foran@citypaper.net)

Posted by Clare Foran @ 3:00 PM Permalink | Post a comment

Comments (0)

Q&A with SHARI SOLANIS: "The goal isn't pornography"
SEXY TIME Q&A: I've never had an orgasm during sex with a man — and I'm 30!
NOW SEE THIS: Transit cop arrests marijuana activist for alleged disorderly conduct.
What we're trying to do this weekend
CONCERT REVIEW: Primus (3D & quadraphonic sound) @ The Tower 10/17
Q&A with Tony Goldwyn: "Life is gray, and relationships are, too"
ICEPACK ILLUSTRATED: Indian fare rules, Dunder Mifflin lives on, Tom Jones is a god
Bradley Cooper promises he's not an asshole
ICEPACK ILLUSTRATED: The Archbishop meets the Geator, the Mayor goes suit shopping, Le Bec Fin fin.
Q&A with Goon’s Seann William Scott

About this blog

Featuring everything from event roundups to concert reviews and sex talk, City Paper's Critical Mass is a space for off-the-wall coverage of Philly's A&E scene.

Follow Critical Mass editors Patrick Rapa and Emily Guendelsberger on Twitter:

@mission2denmark | @emilygee

Search this blog:

Topics:

Blog archives:

May
April
March

February
January

Past Archives: