MoMA sells $70 million art collection, may use proceeds to buy digital art and NFTs
by James · September 14, 2022
The William S. Paley Foundation will auction off at least $70 million in art masterpieces this fall to expand the digital footprint of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York and possibly acquire the museum’s first NFTs.
MoMA has cared for William S. Paley’s collection since the CBS co-founder’s death in 1990. Paley’s namesake, which holds endowment funds for museums and educational and cultural programs, has enlisted Sotheby’s to auction 29 of the MoMA collection’s 81 pieces.
The income from the sale will be used to expand the museum’s digital presence. According to MoMA director Glenn Lowry i The Wall Street Journalthe museum has outlined several options for the money.
MoMA could launch its own streaming channel, host virtual exhibitions and video chats with creators, or partner with universities and course providers to offer online courses. More significantly, for crypto fans, MoMA can also purchase its first NFTs.
Lowry said the museum has a dedicated team that keeps an eye on the digital art landscape to look for potential artist collaborations or purchases.
“We’re conscious of the fact that we’re lending an imprimatur when we acquire pieces,” he said of NFTs in the interview, “but that doesn’t mean we should avoid the domain.”
What is for sale?
The arrangement between the William S. Paley Foundation and MoMA gives MoMA the final say on how the collection will be used. A small portion of the sales in the fall auction will go to other philanthropic causes that the late Paley runs.
Many of the collection’s best-known pieces, including Picasso’s 1905-06 “Boy Leading a Horse” and Matisse’s “Woman with a Veil” are not for sale. However, Lowry confirmed that a Rousseau and a Renoir will be auctioned off.
Pablo Picasso’s “Guitar on a Table” will fetch at least $20 million in New York in November, while Francis Bacon’s “Three Studies for a Portrait of Henrietta Moraes,” will fetch at least $35 million in London in October, according to Sotheby’s .
The collection is expected to cost between 70 and 100 million dollars.
While MoMA does not yet have a tokenized artwork on the blockchain, the museum has already contributed to the creation of NFTs. In November last year, MoMA contributed metadata of its entire collection towards AI artist Refik Anadol’s exhibition/NFT project Without supervision.
