"Since the release of some of the Epstein files, journalists and members of the art public have been scouring them to find associations to our beloved world of art. We knew they were there because the halls of power are a short hop away from modern and contemporary art. The super-wealthy financialize their holdings for loans, as Josh Spero points out in the Financial Times, and prestige in grand gestures of artwashing."
"We're looking through peepholes and often seeing only the reception areas of more complex offices of power, where the true decision-making lies. The culture that Jeffrey Epstein represents is deeply embedded in the art establishment power structures that force themselves onto the rest of us, creating dynamics that exploit, degrade, and turn us all into cynics. Former museum director and School of Visual Arts department chair David Ross has been one of the only art-world figures to suffer consequences for the surfaced messages"
The culture associated with Jeffrey Epstein has permeated art establishment power structures, producing exploitative dynamics and widespread cynicism. Epstein-related files reveal intersections of wealth, prestige, and artwashing, where the super-wealthy financialize holdings for loans and seek reputational gain through museum gifts. Observers often see only reception areas of power, obscuring real decision-making that enables unethical ties. Institutional leaders frequently use charm to ingratiate themselves with donors and trustees to secure loans, donations, or favors. Consequences for implicated art-world figures have been rare. Smaller arts organizations face similar pressures, and leaders sometimes replicate these behaviors to survive.
Read at Hyperallergic
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