Art-Market Fever: The Marginalization of Museums

"Mega-collectors simply don't need museums as much as they used to. Their art-market clout derives from their overwhelming purchasing power, not their curatorial connections. In its recent editorial decrying Steve Cohen's loan to the Metropolitan Museum of Damien Hirst's shark, the NY Times quaintly claimed: "It may appear as if Mr. Cohen is doing the Met a favor by lending this work. In fact," the Times pundits argue, "it is the other way around," because the Met display has the effect of "endorsing and validating the quality of the collector's eye."
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