NORTHWEST ARKANSAS — The Tennessee university that is seeking to sell a halfinterest in its Stieglitz art collection to Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art was critical Monday of a new proposal involving a donor willing to pay the school’s display and maintenance costs for the collection.
Fisk University of Nashville has asked Davidson County (Tenn.) Chancery Court for permission to sell a 50 percent share in the 101-piece collection to the Bentonville museum, which is under construction near downtown Bentonville.
The historically black university has argued it could face bankruptcy without the $30 million the sale would bring.
Fisk also has argued it is a financial burden to maintain and display the collection, which the late painter Georgia O’Keeffe donated to the school.
On Friday, Tennessee Attorney General Bob Cooper said in a court filing that a donor has come forward with enough money to allow the university to keep the collection on its campus. Fisk alumna Carol Creswell-Betsch has established a fund that would pay the display and maintenance costs, subject to the court’s approval, he wrote.
On Monday, Fisk responded that Cooper’s new plan doesn’t address the university’s “fundamental financial challenge,” according to a statement released through spokesman Greg Bryant.
“Without a large infusion of cash, Fisk cannot continue to operate,” the statement read.
“This unsubstantiated plan, purportedly funded by unknown donors and pledge amounts, is another scheme which fails to address Fisk’s survival,” it continued. “The court has already ruled that any proposal must address Fisk University’s overall financial health; the attorney general’s plan does not mention Fisk’s well-being.”
Fisk officials said the only proposal before the court that could ensure the permanent care of the art and the school’s ability to continue its educational mission is the sharing arrangement withCrystal Bridges.
Cooper filed a separate brief Friday in which he argued the sharing arrangement would void the artworks’ protected status as a restricted, charitable gift, meaning they could be seized by creditors should Fisk declare bankruptcy.
Crystal Bridges spokesman Virginia Germann on Monday declined to respond to the developments, citing the ongoing court case. “We’ll comment after the official ruling,” she said.
Northwest Arkansas, Pages 12 on 10/26/2010