With all the pandemic closures we’ve seen in the last year or so, the art world is still reeling. According to a survey of 1000 museum directors conducted by the American Alliance of Museums (AAM), three-quarters of them will lose nearly 40% of their income in 2020 alone. The Met announced losses of $150 million, as first reported by Artnet News, and will attempt to make up the losses with a new print auction.
In collaboration with Christie’s, the event will take over three sales and showcase work from the Met’s collection. The collection includes many Civil War photographs and works by Pablo Picasso, Frank Stella, Roy Lichtenstein, and others. The Metropolitan Museum of Art (MMA) is one of many institutions hoping to make good use of 2 years granted by the Association of Art Museum Directors that allows institutions to sell art to fund collection care. The Met’s deaccessioning program is expected to generate approximately $1.4 million in total. The first auction will take place on September 24, with the second and third scheduled for October 6 and November 7.
