JIM reviews film "THE ART OF THE STEAL" + reports on Q&A with Director

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Art Of the Steal

MY Rating: 8.5 of 10 stars (based on an advance screening of the 101-minute film).

BEWARE the politically Well-Connected!

As shown in this fascinating documentary, on January 2, 1872, a guy named Albert C. Barnes was born in Philadelphia to working-class parents. As he grew, he studied chemistry, and developed an antiseptic of silver nitrate (which helped combat venereal disease). It was named Argyrol, and made him a millionaire before he turned 35 (at a time when “million” really “meant” something)…

… After that, he developed a deep interest in studying art, and, when one of his ex-high-school classmates was visiting Paris, Barnes had him buy some “modern” French paintings for him to start his personal collection. That made him even more interested in such art, and when he himself visited Paris in 1912, he was personally introduced to famous artists (such as Matisse & Picasso & Modigliano, by Gertrude & Leo Stein & a French art dealer)…

… Barnes thus had “connections”, a great “EYE” for fine art— and fabulous “timing” {in that he SOLD his company BEFORE the “Crash” of 1929 & before other “competing” antibiotics became available, & thus had the money to buy loads of wonderful items at “Depression(-ed)” prices}… Barnes was thus able to acquire the most VALUABLE personal collection of such artwork in private hands…

… In a suburb of Phily (in a town named Merion around 5 miles west of the big city), he built a special HOME in which to carefully display his beloved Impressionist & Modernist acquisitions. As the movie shows (thru photos and even some old movies), he spent much time planning the special art displays in his home, grouping items by “aesthetics” rather than in any chronological or period order, happily mixing paintings with handcrafted metal items such as door hardware, etc….

… But, unlike many collectors, he wanted to share what he’d found with other STUDENTS of art, rather than with “high-born” or “politically-connected” museum-going types. Thus, while students could get in to see his collection, many others were simply not welcome…

… In 1923, because publicity of his collection had “spread” & created what he felt was a “demand” to see such artwork, Barnes (who the film points out was way “ahead of his time”) set up a special EXHIBITION of some of his collection at a Fine Arts building in downtown Phily…

… But, since it mainly consisted of what to most Americans were then “new styles of art”, many considered it overly “avant garde”— & when his exhibit was”dissed” by local art critics, his antagonism towards such people became even stronger… He even more staunchly resisted sharing the holdings with such people, took the collection back into his home, & tightly controlled WHO was allowed to see it…

… Barnes decided to set up a FOUNDATION to control his art holdings, & worked hard to make sure it was constructed in a way to encourage knowledge and education in the arts as opposed to “kow-towing” to the well-connected rich types who were involved with standard “Museum” operations…

… As the movie progresses, there are numerous INTERVIEWS done with people who knew Barnes or were students or teachers at the Barnes Foundation or affiliated with people who were so-connected… In time, the type of art he owned came to be very HIGHLY-valued and appreciated, & Barnes wanted to be sure that his holdings did NOT go to any of the Museums who were now clamoring for what they originally “put-down”…

… The “hoi-polloi” in Phily were associated with the Philadelphia Art Museum, & he tended to hate the pretensions & attitudes of such people, such as the rich Annenbergs who ran the Philadelphia Inquirer newspaper. To Barnes, his home-based collection was more a “SCHOOL” than anything open to “Establishment”-type people who he felt just wanted a “depository” for such art…

… When he saw the way art belonging to a once-rich man named Johnson was greedily “taken-over” by people who had nothing to do with that man, Barnes made sure he got himself a very good LAWYER to handle plans for the disposition of his OWN beloved holdings:

… Barnes had his lawyer carefully draw up a will that left his artwork to the Foundation, with special stipulations that it was NEVER to be sold or loaned-out to any people or museum-type institutions, was never to leave his home in Merion, and was to be displayed JUST as he’d personally exhibited it in the 23 or so rooms in his home located in a “private” neighborhood of the town…

… It was extremely important to highly-opinionated Barnes that no one be able to “STEAL” his collection as had happened with other people (such as Johnson)… As told by the movie, Barnes had been a pace-setter in the way he’d employed BLACKS in his company & supported civil rights & black art {such as the Harlem Renaissance}…

… Barnes {in the 1940’s} met Horace Mann Bond who was the first black president of a Chester County, PA black college named LINCOLN UNIVERSITY. They became friends, &, always enjoying dealing with students, Barnes invited groups of students from there to visit and see and learn about his art collection… He even carefully mentioned the University in his WILL…

… Barnes was very feisty, at times demanding that “regular” people WRITE for appointments to visit the collection. If he didn’t like how they “sounded”, he at times rejected them with a note signed in the name of his dog!…

… When Barnes died on July 24, 1951, a very carefully-selected Foundation Board took control of his holdings. His main associate had been Violetta De Mazia who was a French teacher at the Foundation & believed as HE did in how things should be kept “private” & for the benefit of students rather than for any Museum types…

… The rich Annenbergs had long been someone Barnes “FOUGHT” with due to their attitudes about art & how it should be “handled”. When Barnes died, the Annenbergs kept trying to “push” for his art to be put under the control of the Phily Art Museum where THEY were “big-shots”, & Violetta kept fighting that idea & their efforts to open up the Barnes home to a larger / curious “general” public…

… As one of the interviewees commented, Barnes had little but derision for the type of “general” public embodied by a certain guy who, after visiting the Barnes home for like an hour and seeing numerous masterpieces of art, commented that he’d seen “enough FAT LADIES for one day!”… Violetta worked diligently to try to keep things as BARNES had wanted them done at the Foundation…

… Barnes (a “misanthrope”) had had no children, & the Foundation was left in control of 5 trustees. But, on Sept. 20, 1988, the last original trustee, Violetta, died. That (per Barnes’ will) left the control of the Foundation in the hands of LINCOLN UNIVERSITY— which, being badly supported by the State, had money problems to contend with…

… As told by various people (such as politician Julian Bonds, son of Horace), there were deep “political” shenanigans that tended to happen once Lincoln got involved. Franklin Williams, a lawyer there, became a Foundation trustee & had to contend with deep “stresses” by others who felt the University could possibly get some MONEY out of the Barnes holdings (which was against his will)…

… Unfortunately, he died after being in control for only a year, and another lawyer – Richard Glanton – got control of the Board and seemed very “amenable” to trying to USE Barnes’ holdings to try to do what the “Establishment” types wanted:

…Because of complaints by the Annenburgs (who used their newspapers & political “connections” to try to “rouse” the public to do what THEY wanted as a sort of “power trip”), Glanton (who appears in the film) started to OPEN the Foundation home to the “general” public (Barnes had tried to discourage). It became a situation that the Board even allowed bunches of TOUR buses to come to the residential neighborhood to see the art…

… Glanton followed the “lead” of the Annenbergs & others in trying to claim that the Foundation building was in deep need of REPAIRS, which was the “excuse” for various money-raising activities. He tried to claim that windows were rotted, the HVAC system wasn’t proper for the artwork being housed, etc. Numerous people in the film DISPUTE Glanton’s contentions & “question” his “motives”…

… In time, Glanton became “tight” with the Annenbergs & “big-shot” politicians and the like, in-effect “following” their wishes to try to “open” up Barnes’ holdings to OTHERS (which Barnes didn’t want). Glanton (according to others) vastly EXAGGERATED the supposed “need” for massive repairs to the Barnes building, as an “excuse” to get what he desired to make himself treated as a “big shot”:

… Glanton wanted to send lots of the Barnes’ artwork AWAY from the Foundation home on TOURS to various museums such as in Paris, supposedly to get needed “money” for the “repairs”… That directly contradicted BARNES’ wishes (as expressed in his will), & when the Foundation’s Advisory Board didn’t agree with that idea, Glanton promptly FIRED the Board & sent the artwork abroad for years (going to various overseas locations to be “hailed” by others, etc.)…

… And, when the artwork finally came back to the U.S., rather than having it sent back to Barnes’ MERION home for the 09-11-95 “Reopening”, per the wishes of Annenberg, it was sent to the PHILY Museum he himself was “associated” with— precisely the place Barnes (& his will) had LEAST wanted his possessions to ever go!…

… With great irony, the film quotes one of the Annenbergs saying, there was a group of Japanese people who wanted to BUY his own (Annenberg) art collection, but he felt it should NOT be put in the control of OTHER people — exactly the OPPOSITE of what his position was on the much more valuable holdings of his old “antagonist” BARNES!…

… The Annenbergs (— friends of Richard Nixon —) & others kept “pushing” for the Barnes collection to in-effect go to the control of the Phily Museum THEY were “big-shots” at… (And, with more irony, Annenberg’s OWN personal collection was eventually given by him to a Museum in NEW YORK!… What a “shock”— that the rich & “highly-connected” could be HYPOCRITES!…)

… At one point, the film interviews some residential NEIGHBORS of Barnes— who spoke of how they went to the County to RESIST Glanton’s plans to try to build a 50-car PARKING LOT in their neighborhood as a way to “push” for more TOURISTS to come to the area… Glanton tried to sue the neighbors under a claim that their protests were supposedly made as a CIVIL RIGHTS violation because the University was mainly black, even going so far as to claim that they’d behaved under some “Ku Klux Klan” actions!…

… The court TOSSED OUT Glanton’s protests & REFUSED to allow the parking lot to be built in the neighborhood… Glanton tried to in-effect void OTHER provisions in Barnes’ will, by trying to get the art holdings moved to the control of people involved with the PHILY Art Museum. At one time, it was claimed that Barnes’ art was worth like $ 4 billion — but (as an in-the-know art dealer points out), the actual value was likely at least $ 25-30 billion, & many people wanted CONTROL of that…

… Around Sept, 23, 2000, various “Establishment” types kept working to try to in-effect gain CONTROL control of Barnes’ super-valuable properties. That involved statements from other Foundations such as Pew, claiming that the Barnes Foundation supposedly needed $ 150 million to build a “proper” NEW building (again, in violation of Barnes’ wishes) to house the collection, &, amazingly enough, they just “happened” to want it to be right near the PHILY Art Museum (as the Annenbergs wanted)!…

… Various in-the-know people point out how there was NO REAL NEED for any new building [& the money could be put to far BETTER use “elsewhere”]: they could simply renovate the current building (again, as Barnes’ will wanted) rather than build a whole new expensive location [probably, I think, with “kickbacks” to various “connected” contractors & the like], as a means of drawing more TOURISTS to the downtown Phily area [which again would benefit certain “connected” people]…

… In time, after various conflicts, the Lincoln board eventually OUSTED Glanton from any control… Interviewees related how a well-connected person named Bernard Watson (head of the Phily Convention Center – Tourism group) got involved & he tried to push for the new PHILY building…

… The filmmakers interview the State’s ex-Governor Rendell as part of showing how he’d promised MONEY to the University, & he tries to claim that the money offer supposedly had “NOTHING” to do with the University’s sudden willingness to ALLOW the Barnes collection to be MOVED to Phily… Other interviewees strongly contradict what the Gov & others say about the matter…

… At one point, it’s revealed that it was found that the State BUDGET had a provision in it for the $ 100+ million that Pew (trying to switch from a private to a “public” Foundation) & other “connected” Foundations & people were proposing be used to MOVE the Barnes collection — & it was put in the budget even BEFORE any “formal” words came from the University & others even PROPOSING the “specifics” of the planned move & the new building to house it!…

… A group, the Friends of the Barnes Foundation, went to Montgomery County & POINTED OUT how there was never any concrete “need” for moving the collection from Merion to Phily (less than 5 miles away), to try to convince a Judge to OVERTURN his ruling ALLOWING the plan for the supposedly “necessary” new building…

…. And, here’s ANOTHER shock for you: when the strange “discrepancy” was pointed out that money was EARMARKED in the State Budget for the planned move (promoted by Pew & others) well BEFORE the move was even formally proposed, NO ONE could be found who would take any “responsibility” for PUTTING that item into the Budget! Despite the huge amount of money set “aside” for the building, supposedly, no one knew “HOW” it chanced to be “inserted” there in the budget or “WHERE” it “came” from!…

… Typical of political CTA (“COVER Thy Ass”) actions, the judge REFUSED to re-consider the whole matter, claiming the Friends had no “standing” in the matter… (Why is it that “RIGHT” is so often “WRONG” in today’s America?!…)

… The movie, wanting to give a more “balanced” view of the whole situation, points out a number of “antagonist” people it TRIED to interview for the film (such as Ms. Rimel of the Pew Foundation, who kept “pushing” for the new building, claiming “they” were going to provide some money for it)— but, invariably, those “well-connected” people repeatedly DECLINED to say ANYTHING for the camera…

… And, tho other news-related people were allowed in, the 3 filmmakers were REFUSED entry at a so-called city “News Conference” to announce the “start” of work on creating the NEW Phily home for Barnes’ collection…

… Various interviewees who did appear pointed out, it appeared to them that this was one big “GRAB” of a super valuable collection— laying out $ 150 million or so (of PUBLIC funds, keep in mind!) on an UN-needed building (likely, I think to BENEFIT a bunch of “un-named” highly-connected people) to get control of something worth probably $ 25 billion or more… How “convenient” (for “THEM”!)…

… Is there something “ROTTEN” going on among the “Establishment” people in Phily?!… Doesn’t it seem to be “stinking” EVERYPLACE where politics is connected nowadays?!…

… The film does a fine job of pointing out the SAD connection between agenda-rooted “Big Shots” & running roughshod over the direct wishes of the “smaller” INDIVIDUALS & the rights (& wishes) that they have (such as Barnes expressed in his very specific will)…

… Unfortunately, it appears to be going on ALL OVER the place— witness the activities of “Shoddy Roddy” (the “Hot-Air Peacock”) in Illinois, the LIES from Governors (like Sanford in South Carolina) to Presidential candidates (like John Edwards), & the “connected” businessmen & their disgusting dupes & accomplices all over the place…

… A POX (— & a demand for immediate ACCOUNTABILITY —) on them all!…

= = = = = = = = =

Q&A with Director DON ARGOTT

The nite’s film screening was a special presentation by the Chicago Int’l Film Festival (Cinema Chicago) for its members. After the movie ran, JESSE BERKOWITZ, the Festival’s Documentary & Shorts programmer, introduced the film’s director, DON ARGOTT, for a Q&A…

… Jesse asked Don the first question, namely, how did he get INVOLVED in the project? Don said, he chanced to meet E.R. Feinberg, who took classes at the Foundation 20 years ago, & he told the story of how upsetting it was at the way the Phily-area “Establishment” worked to wrest control of Barnes’ collection (&, as I recall, agreed to personally FINANCE the cost of a film on the subject)…

… Don commented that, “We did a ton of RESEARCH—” on the overall matter. When he contacted those currently in control of the Foundation, they were regularly UNcooperative with them about the idea of telling the story of the Foundation—so, they proceeded with others they could get who were willing to speak on the record…

… To a question asked by an audience member, Don said, it took about 1.5 years (since 2007) to make the film, with the preparations, interviews, & editing and the like. They were done by the middle of 2008, & purposely “sat” on it (which was “hard” for them to do) for the 2009 TORONTO Film Festival this past September, where it was very well received…

… Another audience person commented on how unusually “CANDID” the interviewees were & how much he’d enjoyed that honesty. Don said, those who spoke usually had strong feelings on the subject: “The people we got to talk were DYING to talk…”

… The “crew” consisted of just him & 2 other people. Don said, they tried NUMEROUS times to get people on the “other” side to talk, to try to present a “BALANCED” view of the story—but those on the “other” side time & again REFUSED to say anything about THEIR parts in things & their opinions, which is why the film may come across as “1-sided” to some people…

… A guy in the audience commented on how, overall, the movie reminds him of a famous comment about how a “recurrent” theme in History is that, Capitalism eventually DESTROYS things {such as people wanting to control their own possessions}, & how you thus “have to KILL Capitalism” to avoid such things. Don said, he feels it’d be hard to argue “against” that idea, & he (like Barnes himself) has a “pretty CYNICAL world view”…

… Another man in the audience complimented Don, saying, he’d found the film to be “the BEST documentary I’ve ever seen!”, with the careful way elements were explained and all. Don appreciated that comment…

… Don was asked more about why Montgomery County in PA (where Merion is located) didn’t APPEAL the judge’s ruling allowing the move to Phily. He said, it was felt the Friends of the Barnes group wouldn’t be able to show direct “standing” in the suit— and further, there was a lack of County MONEY to continue, & a reduction in the “political will” needed to pursue it against the well-funded “Establishment” types pushing for the move to Phily…

… Someone spoke about lawyer GRANTON. Don commented that, he has a “great character” as a main person involved in the story, &, tho he clearly seemed to cause some problems in the running of the Foundation according to Barnes’ wishes, he often does NOT come across as the “WORST” figure in the overall story…

… I MYSELF asked a question: I pointed out how there were a number of main people involved in the story who’d REFUSED to talk to him, even to the point of refusing to have his crew at a Press Conference about the move. I wondered if those people had somehow heard just WHAT he was attempting to “tell” in his film, &, if so, HOW they’d learned of it?…

… Don said, those people absolutely “had NO idea of the KIND of film” they were making, & they couldn’t, because they’d started out with NO “agenda” in making it— they just wanted to research the facts & present things accordingly!…

… Looking back (in hindsight), Don indicated that it could well be that they’d declined simply because they probably in-effect FEARED the overall story getting “out” to the public at large, & therefore were hesitant in “linking” themselves to it in any way…

… Don added that, he’d gone over & over again to people in the Barnes Foundation, wanting to give them an opportunity to present “their” side of things… He would’ve been happy if they’d say ANYTHING about the subject— but, they declined to even say that they DIDN’T WANT to say anything!..

… Further, since the film’s been shown at Toronto & in Phily, he’s heard statements some of the Foundation people have made claiming that they “KNEW” that the filmmakers were in essence trying to do a “muck-raking” kind of expose (= my words!), & that’s “why” they’d said nothing to him…

… But, as Don forcefully remarked to me, “That’s pure B.S.!… They didn’t think ANYTHING of us!”, because NO ONE knew the “purpose” of the film as it was being filmed, since they’d gone into it with NO “agenda” in what or “how” they’d tell about the story!…

… The film has opened already in New York besides Phily, & it’s had a very positive response. It’ll open in 90 more cities including Chicago starting March 12th… A lady in the audience later pointed out that, the film was ALSO available “on demand” right NOW thru the COMCAST cable network (having been offered since 2-24-10). Don thanked her for that info, not having known if Comcast was even available in this area…

… A woman in the audience commented on how she’d SEEN the Barnes collection when it was in Paris around the late 1960’s or so, it was absolutely amazing, and she was astonished that she’d never before even HEARD that such a fabulous collection existed in private hands in the U.S.!… She was “dying to go back” & see it again (in its “home” setting in Merion)…

… Another person told of having seen it IN the Barnes Foundation building, & it is indeed remarkable, & “there’s NO other place like it” (with the mass of quality objects crowding wall after wall in a very carefully-laid-out presentation), with the beautiful gardens adding to the effect…

… When asked, Don — who’s been to the building many times in doing the documentary – said yes, people CAN go see the collection at certain times & days currently. [By the way: people could get to the Merion building via a 4-block or so walk from a stop on the # 44 Phily bus route…]

… He added that the “Big shots” have already started CLOSING certain galleries there, supposedly in preparation for the move to the NEW Phily building being constructed. There are more galleries set to close in 2011 (supposedly to “pack” things), tho the new building won’t even be ready until 2012…

… The “Establishment” claims that the collection will be kept “intact”, & they will supposedly “DUPLICATE” Barnes’ original settings in the NEW building. No one is positive if that “assurance” will actually come to pass, & the “new” building wasn’t really “NEEDED” in the first place, since Barnes’ building was (as Don put it) “… built for this exact REASON [of presenting the collection how & where Barnes himself wanted]… It didn’t need to be REPLICATED…”;

… (In my opinion, the money could have been put to far BETTER use on other really imperative projects for the public at large, such as for reducing homelessness, providing better HEALTH-CARE choices for the poor, etc.)…

… Don was asked, what does he “HOPE” for with the release of his movie? Don said, well, since there was no “agenda” as it was being made of trying to “point” people’s minds in a certain direction, he’s happy to just “leave it up to the PEOPLE how outraged they get” at the way things are handled in America at times…

… After Jesse thanked him for the Q&A, Don stood around and answered some more questions from people who came up to him. He said, his film-making operation was called “9-14” simply because that refers to the date he was born…

… The only CRITICISM the film has had that he knows of, came from a woman writing for the (wouldn’t you “know” it) Philadelphia INQUIRER newspaper (once owned by the antagonistic Annenbergs). That article does NOT review the FILM at all, & instead just delves into making “statements” from the “OTHER” side of the controversy… And, that lady just “happens” to be married to the POLITICIAN who runs the 10th District for the city of PHILY!…

… So, Folks— don’t “HOLD your breath” that our “I know NOTHING!” politicians are likely to start telling you the TRUTH & operating for the good of the “GENERAL” public (as opposed to helping out their “Fat-Cat” well-connected FRIENDS) anytime soon!…