CSULB Art History Professor Nizan Shaked quoted in Los Angeles Times

CSULB Art History Professor Nizan Shaked was quoted in a Los Angeles Times’ article entitled “What’s next for nonprofit museums after the closing of the Marciano Art Foundation?” Written by Carolina A. Miranda the article explores the rise and fall of the Marciano Art Foundation, which had recently opened in 2017, but shuttered its doors this week, and showed the tensions between those at the top of the museum hierarchy with those workers at the bottom. Writes Miranda, “Shaked…notes that small, private art foundations like the Marciano are frequently founded by a collector, run by that same collector and showcase the collection of that collector — all to their financial benefit.

‘The American nonprofit sector doesn’t account for the way in which art has become an asset,’ [Shaked] explained. ‘There needs to be more scrutiny of how these institutions are benefiting private individuals,’ she said. ‘We need to think about how we regulate these institutions. And maybe ask, why are they tax exempt to begin with? Are the benefits outweighing the costs to the public?'”