READING \u2014 Albright College will auction most of its artwork in July as the private liberal arts school continues to address a deficit.<\/p>\n
But what that collection includes, how much it might be worth, and what pieces hold local and regional significance remain unclear.<\/p>\n
College administrators and auctioneers did not answer a Spotlight PA inquiry seeking an estimated value for the 2,008 works in Albright\u2019s collection, most of which are works on paper and not expected to yield \u201csignificant financial return,\u201d a college spokesperson said. Reading Public Museum, which has been in talks with Albright since late last year, wouldn\u2019t say what pieces it might acquire.<\/p>\n
The artwork hasn\u2019t been properly stored, which has compromised some of the pieces, said James Gaddy, vice president of administration at Albright. But he would not say how many pieces have been damaged. Administrators and the auction company continue to comb the collection to determine what will be sold.<\/p>\n
The collection going to auction from Albright\u2019s Freedman Gallery was founded and funded by alum Doris C. Freedman<\/a>, and opened on the college\u2019s campus in 1976, featuring work by 25 artists including Nancy Grossman<\/a>, Sylvia Stone<\/a>, Sam Francis<\/a>, and Ben Schonzeit<\/a>. The gallery primarily displayed contemporary work by American artists, and over the years amassed a collection of prints, photographs, paintings, and sculptures.<\/p>\n Albright no longer has historical information about the gallery on its website<\/a>, which now has a note announcing the college\u2019s plan to \u201cpart with its institutional art collection.\u201d<\/p>\n An Artstor directory<\/a> of the Freedman Gallery collection lists over 1,000 items, including work by Salvador Dali, Ronald Abram, Yaacov Agam, William Henry Johnson, Robert Bolles, and Alice Baber. One piece by Baber, The Light of the River, was sold for $25,400<\/a> to an undisclosed buyer in 2024 through Freeman\u2019s Auction House in Philadelphia.<\/p>\n Gaddy said the auction of the remaining pieces will serve as the \u201cprimary mechanism\u201d to sell the college\u2019s art collection, which has become untenable for the school to maintain as it grapples with a multimillion-dollar deficit<\/a>.<\/p>\n Pook & Pook in Downingtown<\/a> will host an in-person gallery exhibition from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. July 14 and 15. The auction will also be hosted online at 9 a.m. July 16. The auctioneer said they were still evaluating the art collection to determine what would be offered, and could not provide a dollar value on the possible available pieces.<\/p>\n In response to emailed questions from Spotlight PA, Gaddy said one of the primary reasons for auctioning off the collection is its lack of maintenance, which has made it difficult to find a museum that would accept the works, or potential buyers.<\/p>\n \u201cThe collection has not been cared for in a manner consistent with professional museum standards for several years, due to limited institutional resources,\u201d he wrote. \u201cIn some cases, this lack of proper care has unfortunately compromised the condition of the artwork.\u201d<\/p>\n Last year, Albright College cut 53 positions, canceled some academic majors, and sold property and artwork to close a $20 million deficit. The college in December also received permission to borrow up to $25 million of its endowment fund to prevent \u201cthe risk of closure.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite the bleak picture painted in legal documents<\/a> granting Albright access to its endowment, administrators told Reading City Council in February<\/a> that the college had no plans to close and would be budget-neutral by the summer.<\/p>\n \u201cTo Albright\u2019s credit, we have been proactively addressing challenges, and there are no plans to close,\u201d Thomas Chaves, the college\u2019s vice president of advancement, told Reading officials. \u201cThe college did operate with two years of operating deficits, but as I will share in more detail here, we have right-sized Albright, so that this year we are forecasting a budget-neutral, if not budget-positive, outcome for the year based on the steps we have taken.\u201d<\/p>\n After publication of this story, Larry Bomback, vice president of finance and chief financial officer for Albright, provided Spotlight PA with updated, unaudited figures for the 2024-25 fiscal year, which show a roughly $11 million operating deficit.<\/p>\n Future of the gallery<\/p>\n Albright\u2019s approach to selling the collection has ruffled the local and regional art community as well as Albright\u2019s donors.<\/p>\n Proponents of the college art collections say students\u2019 exposure to the arts makes them well-rounded and enriches their lives by challenging their thinking and expanding their minds.<\/p>\n Jaap van Liere, chair of the college\u2019s Visual Arts Committee that was dissolved in 2024, said he understands that Albright is financially strapped and the administration is making \u201ctough decisions,\u201d but thinks selling the art collection won\u2019t make much money.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t support it because I don’t think it’s worthwhile,\u201d the Albright alum told Spotlight PA in a recent phone interview. \u201cThere are expenses attached to maintaining a collection and [the college is] prioritizing where those expenses lay in their game plan to survive. Don\u2019t get me wrong, I would love the collection to stay and enrich college students.\u201d<\/p>\n From the outset, administrators acknowledged selling Albright\u2019s art collection won\u2019t yield a windfall.<\/p>\n What artwork Reading Public Museum might acquire also remains unclear despite Albright acknowledging plans last year to work with the institution to offload some of the collection.<\/p>\n Reading Public Museum Director and CEO Geoffrey Fleming said the museum hasn\u2019t made any final decisions on artwork from Albright, but they hope those discussions \u201cmay lead to a positive outcome for Albright and the greater Reading community.\u201d<\/p>\n Some works won\u2019t be sold, Gaddy said, because of \u201cdonor restrictions, artistic intent,\u201d or importance to the college\u2019s history. Artwork depicting campus life, former presidents, and other pieces notable to Albright will remain.<\/p>\n He said selling the artwork isn\u2019t about making money but ensuring the pieces find \u201chomes where they can be professionally preserved and appreciated.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMaintaining a collection of this size and quality requires specialized storage, climate control, conservation support, and security \u2014 resources that Albright can no longer sustain responsibly,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n When Freedman, who graduated from Albright in 1950. founded the college\u2019s art gallery, she worked with students and faculty to cultivate the collection, van Liere said.<\/p>\n But when Albright began making moves to sell its art collection, the Freedman family wasn\u2019t informed. Freedman\u2019s three daughters told Artnet in May<\/a> they were unaware of the pending sale.<\/p>\n While You\u2019re Here<\/p>\n Spotlight PA\u2019s nonprofit reporting is a free public service, but it depends on your support. Give now to ensure it can continue.<\/p>\n The sisters called Albright\u2019s decision to sell the collection \u201cshortsighted and counterproductive,\u201d and questioned the legality of the college\u2019s efforts. They said the move guts the art collection and alters the intent of the donation to Albright.<\/p>\n