Word: cuno
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Because they are funded through tax-exempt donations, Cuno argues that a museum is ultimately a public institution, with a collection “held in trust for the public benefit, upheld by the public purse.” Works that are acquired but not displayed can be seen as “preserv[ing] the cultural diversity of the planet...
Though museums generally justify their temporary exhibitions and art loans as necessary to promote financial health in an era of reduced government funding, Cuno questions this logic, arguing that the resource drain and high “opportunity cost” of mounting such exhibitions add up, and that controversial loans can detract from the museum’s reputation and authority—an asset as important as money and facilities...
...points to the Guggenheim museum as an example of “expansionist mode” gone awry. Once the Guggenheim had solidified an international brand name for itself, it cut its staff in half, and saw substantially less growth in its endowment than other museums. By contrast, Cuno says, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Art Institute of Chicago have maintained high popularity while continuing to produce research and scholarship...
...Cuno says he’s troubled by the increasing post-Cold War tendency of “nations claiming cultural property as theirs and only theirs at the expense of others,” with increased restrictions in trade in antiquities. “It will reinforce nationalist tensions and policies and play to the increasing strengthening of nationalism in the world,” he says...
This belief in the innate importance of art drives Whose Muse’s argument. And Cuno is hopeful that the authors’ “polemical” ideas are returning to the mainstream. Since Sept. 11, with a downturn in the economy and diminished tourism, Cuno argues that museums have shown “a greater humility and sense of caution,” which will rebuild the sense of public trust in art museums...