The Corcoran bites the dust

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I have been so tempted to write about this (poor) management case for a few years.  But, given my undying appreciation for art, I kept hoping they would find the management team and focus that would let them pull the rabbit out of the hat.  Instead (this will date me dramatically), the rabbit died without a viable baby being produced.

Unfortunately, the venerable Corcoran Gallery of Art- and its school- will meet their demise in 60 days.  Oh, I know you may have heard that the Corcoran School of Art will be subsumed by George Washington University (GWU).  The Textile Museum will move to the main GWU campus.  And GWU will take over the Beaux Art building as well- for now.  GWU will need to spend some $ 130 million to renovate the building- which is about its entire worth.  (So, will it?)

Until recently, those of us in the know (or not, obviously) thought that the Corcoran was cutting a deal with the University of Maryland.   But, the Corcoran is in a world of hurt and could not wait for an eventual deal with Maryland.

Moreover, Maryland was only committing $ 50 million or so- and the museum building alone needs some $ 120+ million in repairs. On top of which, Maryland was not providing the money- it was loaning the money to the Corcoran.

Which is why GWU and the National Gallery are coming out the winners in this event.  Because they are committing money- big money to this venture.  OK, the National Gallery is not committing cash per se- but guaranteeing the storage and care of the art the Corcoran has (had?).  It will  also mount the exhibitions to show the art to the public.

As I said above, GWU is committing big money for the repair and upgrading of the building.  And, from what I can see, the money the Corcoran just obtained from a lawsuit and an auction is not going to the new custodians (but, that recently obtained $50 million just might convey- or have the money maintain the non-profit entity in another shape and form).

The good thing- at least temporarily- is that the National Gallery of Art will be exhibiting the art for free.  The Corcoran’s 17000 pieces of art will be available to the National Gallery (it will get first dibs); anything the National doesn’t want will be farmed out to museums around the US.  The Corcoran alleges that they have $ 2 billion of art at stake- others (including recent managers) think it is a fraction of that value.

The Corcoran had a glorious history from its start in 1869.  William Wilson Corcoran (he co-founded the Riggs Bank in 1836 [which is now PNC, due to banking scandals in the early 2000’s] ) had a strong desire to advanced American Art, so he started the museum and its mission “Dedicated to Art and encouraging American Genius”.

The Corcoran was the first art museum in the US capital.  Some 21 years later, the art school was founded at the institution.  The organization’s mission became known as the “Three C’s”- collection, college, and community.  But, as of this year, only some 550 students (graduate and undergraduate) are enrolled in their programs.  Given the financial straits of the institution, it should not be surprising that enrollment has been dropping.

There has been a major flaw with the Corcoran’s business model- it charged visitors for admission.  This put it at a disadvantage, since almost all its neighbor museums offered free admission.  (The problem for the Corcoran is that the other sites are subsidized by the US Government.)  And, in another city, that model might have worked- but not in DC, where tourists expect free museum trips.

The managers modified the idea (updated the concept?) somewhat in the 60s, 70s, and 80s.   They aimed to promote the local art market, which also helped their school.  But, it turns out that there is no real money in the local art business- at least not in DC.   So, they dropped this program, because it was just not producing the financial results for which they hoped.

It didn’t help that, at least for the past decade, the best that could be said about the management of the Corcoran was that it was erratic.  Of course, incompetent could be another choice term for it. And, now, the dedicated staff of the Corcoran fears they will be provided their pink slips shortly, which is typically what happens during management failures.

This next year will be very interesting for those of us interested in American Art…

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