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Polaroid Collection: They’re Closed

At 5 p.m. CST this afternoon, bidding closed on three separate chunks of the now-dismembered Polaroid Collection. For all intents and purposes, the dispersal of this unique, irreplaceable collection will have run its course by the end of this month.

The first phase of the ill-fated Collection’s distribution in parts took place last June, through […]

Polaroid Collection: Urgent Institutional Alert 2

I’ll put my dollar on 20 Exchange Place turning the Polaroid Collection into trophy lobby decor, using it to accessorize its newly gentrified location, with perhaps a small dedicated gallery on the ground floor or in the retail area. That gallery will be rentable for social events, of course; nothing tones up a corporate cocktail party or an upscale wedding reception like world-class fine art on the walls, as museums around the country have discovered. And access to any part of the collection not on display will become so restricted that we might as well kiss it goodbye. (You read it here first.) […]

Polaroid Collection: Urgent Institutional Alert 1

John R. Stoebner, the court-appointed Chapter 7 Trustee in the PBE Corporation bankruptcy proceeding that involves the Polaroid Collection, anounced on January 3, 2010 that he has found buyers for most of the collection. This opens the way for a poential auction for the several remaining components of the Polaroid Collection, with competitive bids due no later that 5 p.m. CST on January 20, 2011 — 10 days hence. That leaves a very brief window of opportunity for any institution or other potential purchaser to submit an offer. […]

Adams Authentication and the CCP (3)

You can see how this matter begins to bear on Team Norsigian’s struggle to authenticate the negatives it claims were made by Ansel Adams. Norsigian and his representatives have made numerous efforts to involve the CCP in the authentication of those negatives. In light of the revelation that the CCP does in fact “routinely” authenticate Adams material via a set of established protocols, the CCP’s responses to Team Norsigian’s requests can only be termed suspicious — inappropriate and, in several cases, inconsistent with its own established policies and procedures. […]

Adams Authentication and the CCP (2)

According to a press release dated last Friday, on December 16, 2010, Richard “Rick” Norsigian and PRS Media Partners “publicly announced the filing of a counterclaim against the Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust. The primary allegations of the four-count suit involve claims for slander and civil conspiracy.” I’ve indicated previously that I fully expect the Adams Trust to prevail in its trademark-violation suit against Norsigian and PRS Media Partners. Yet it’s no contradiction to say that it wouldn’t surprise me if the letter consortium prevailed in its countersuit. […]