Acquisitions

Acquisitions include gifts, purchases, bequests, exchanges, transfers and any other formal process by which title to an artwork is transferred to the collection.                                                        

A. General Criteria                        

  1. Acquisitions are intended to be retained and are reviewed according to the following general criteria:
    • The artwork shall conform to the general collecting goals of the museum as outlined in the museum’s collection plan (the Collection Plan).
    • The museum will not purchase artwork either made or owned by currently employed faculty, current students, museum staff, advisory board members, Collection Committee members, or their family members.
    • Works offered as gifts by current, former and emeritus faculty, current and former students, staff, advisory board members, Collection Committee members, and volunteers or their family members will be considered based on the national and international reputation of the artist and/or potential merit of the work.
    • The artwork shall possess potential for research, scholarship and education,
 and serve students and faculty as a resource for teaching and research.
    • The artwork shall be useful for exhibition purposes in the museum and in suitable public spaces.
    • Museum staff will exercise due diligence to acquire artwork that are represented and warranted to be free of all liens and claims of any kind. The owner or vendor of the artwork must hold good title to it, which is understood to mean that the owner or vendor either owns or has been authorized by the rightful owner to sell or donate the work. 
    • The artwork shall retain its essential integrity and be in a reasonable state of preservation. 
Works should be unframed and physically examined before acquisition.
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  2. In addition to the general criteria, the following questions should be considered:
    • Does the artwork represent a new area of collecting? If so, shall it be pursued?
    • 
Is appropriate storage available?
    • Will the packing, transportation, storage or conservation costs to the museum be excessive or unusual? 

    • Has the provenance of the artwork been satisfactorily explored?
    • Might the artwork be subject to possible repatriation?
    • Are there questions regarding legal title? 

    • Is the artwork being offered as a fractional gift?
    • 
Is the artwork being offered as a gift with restrictions?
    • Is the artwork being offered as a gift by an artist, dealer, current or former faculty member or student, museum staff, advisory board member, Collection Committee member, or affiliate group member, or by the spouse, family or business associate of any of the above? If so, potential conflicts of interest must be addressed. 

    • Is the artwork encumbered by intellectual property rights, e.g., copyright, patent, trademark, etc.?
    • Rather than purchasing the artwork, might it or a similar work be obtained by gift or bequest? 

    • Is the purchase price reasonable and appropriate? 


Statement of policy regarding the acquisition of antiquities, NAGPRA, Nazi-era material

Museum staff abides by the Nov. 14, 1970, UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property as well as more recent international agreements that update or replace the 1970 agreement. Museum staff and Collection Committee members shall not knowingly acquire or allow to be recommended for accession any artwork that have been stolen or illegally imported into the United States in contravention of the applicable laws of the countries of origin or exporting countries, and/or contravention of international treaties and international conventions.

Museum staff will fully comply with the requirements of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) and future amendments to the act. The museum will endeavor to achieve reasonable and respectful solutions to the issues and conflicts that might not be specifically addressed in NAGPRA.

Museum staff will not knowingly purchase or otherwise traffic in any Native American artwork subject to NAGPRA. Where applicability of the law or the definition of an artwork is unclear, the appropriate tribal organization(s) will be consulted. Gift offers that include Native American materials will be considered in terms of NAGPRA, and in consultation with the appropriate Native American groups, if necessary.

Museum staff will take all reasonable steps to resolve the Nazi-era provenance status of artwork before acquiring them by purchase, gift, bequest, transfer or exchange for the collection. If credible evidence of unlawful appropriation without subsequent restitution is discovered through research, museum staff will take prudent and necessary steps to resolve the status of the artwork. 

B. Process of Acquisition 

  1. Acquisitions are generally initiated by the director or curator and require written letter of intent to give from the donor or estate if a gift or bequest.
  2. The director or curator shall prepare the standard acquisition proposal, identifying the artwork and explaining the purpose and justification for its acquisition. As far as possible, the proposal shall address the criteria and questions listed in section V. Acquisitions, subsection A. General Criteria.
  3. Collection/registration staff shall prepare a report on the artwork addressing its present condition, previous conservation treatments, future conservation needs (if any) and storage requirements. This report shall be appended to the acquisition proposal. 

  4. Additionally, the director or curator will request provenance information and documentation on the artwork from the owner.
  5. Outside scholars or experts may be consulted and/or hired by museum staff if staff question the authenticity or provenance of the artwork considered for accession.
  6. The director and Staff Committee will have examined and evaluated the proposed acquisition before its presentation to the Collection Committee. If this is not possible, then approval by the Collection Committee will be conditional upon curatorial and conservation examination.
  7. Artwork to be considered for accession via gift, purchase, exchange, bequest or transfer shall be delivered to the museum in advance of the quarterly Collection Committee meetings. Collection/registration staff records them as insured loans in the loan register. Collection/registration staff and the owner maintain a copy of the custody receipt. The Collection Committee will consider the proposed acquisition at its next regular meeting. In urgent cases, the director may canvass the committee or call a special meeting.
  8. If an artwork acquired by the museum is valued higher than $50,000, the collection/registration staff will send documentation of the artwork’s receipt to University Risk Management.
  9. A simple majority of a quorum of the Collection Committee is required either through verbal assent at a committee meeting or by electronic ballot (via email). Electronic ballots will only be implemented in the case of extraordinary circumstances. In the event of a tie vote, the director will cast the deciding vote. The minutes of each quarterly meeting will reflect the committee’s decision to accept or reject each item on the agenda offered for acquisition.
  10.  Artwork not accepted by the Collection Committee will be returned to the owner once they are notified by the director.  The original copy of the custody receipt must be signed by the owner or their agent to acknowledge the return transfer of possession and release of the museum from further responsibilities and all liabilities with respect to the loan. Collection/registration staff keep a copy of the fully signed receipt on file after the loan has been terminated.

C. Gifts and Requests 

  1. All gifts and bequests are subject to the process of acquisition as outlined in section V. Acquisition, subsection B. Process of Acquisition.
  2. Potential donors are asked to submit in writing, to the director or curator, their offer expressing an intent to give one or more artwork to the museum.
  3. The acceptance of any donated artwork shall be in full accordance with all federal, state and local laws and regulations, and should meet the same general criteria applied to acquisitions by purchase.
    • Museum staff shall not knowingly or tacitly be party to any attempt on the part of prospective donors to evade their legal obligations to a third party, or to any government or government agency in regard to tax liabilities.
  4. The donation of an artwork or other object by gift or bequest may be accepted by the museum as property and not accessioned into the collection. The purpose for such non-accessioned art items would be for the express intent of sale. The donor or executor will be informed in writing of that intention before acceptance of such an artwork.
  5. The acceptance of all gifts and bequests shall be without restriction. No commitment should be made as to attribution or display of the artwork. While it is the museum’s intention to accession for long-term use and preservation, no guarantee shall be made that the artwork will be retained by the museum in perpetuity. There shall be no exceptions to this policy unless any such restrictions or special provisions are considered and approved by the director and the Collection Committee. 

  6. The museum is not obliged to accept any bequests that are not appropriate for its collection per the Collection Plan.
  7. Museum staff must receive a copy of the provision concerning the intended gift in the bequestor’s will before presenting artwork offered to the Collection Committee for approval. The committee’s acceptance of the bequest is provisional based on its condition and understanding of authenticity at the time ownership is transferred. Collection/registration staff will request a receipt of distribution from the executor for them and museum staff to sign. The copy of the bequestor’s will and signed receipt provide the documentation to prove transfer of property ownership. If the executor is unable to issue a receipt of distribution, the museum’s incoming receipt will serve as documentation that the museum received the property.
  8. If an artwork is not named in a will as a bequest to the collection, but the estate chooses to offer it for donation, the artwork will be treated as a gift from the estate and will follow the standard accession approval process for gifts. A deed of gift will be issued and signed by the executor if the Collection Committee accepts a gift from an estate.
  9. The director shall officially acknowledge the acceptance or declining of all gifts and bequests in writing to the donor or donor’s estate.
  10. The donor is responsible for all costs and fees associated with obtaining an appraisal for a donated artwork. Museum staff bears no responsibility for the validity of an appraisal obtained by a donor for tax purposes. 

    • Under no circumstances will museum staff provide formal appraisals of donated artwork. 

  11. In accepting gifts, museum staff must provide written notice that the legal and ultimate responsibility for furnishing evaluations to governmental tax agencies rests with the donor.
  12. For year-end gifts, museum staff must have a written offer of gift from the donor before November 1 of the current year. The offered artwork must be in transit or in the museum’s possession at this time. Due to the necessary approval procedures, gifts offered after the year-end Collection Committee meeting cannot be considered before the end of the calendar year. This procedure may be circumvented under extraordinary circumstances and at the director’s discretion.
  13. Museum staff will consider the proposed gift of artwork to be given incrementally. The donor’s intentions, including a donation schedule, must be stated in writing and comply with CU policies.

D. Purchases 

Consideration of purchase of artwork is the responsibility of the director and curator.

  1. The date of property transfer occurs when the university has issued full payment to the owner, dealer or vendor.
  2. The aesthetic merit and/or historical value of artwork shall be the pre-eminent criterion in consideration of acquisition by purchase. 
The need to fill a gap in a particular collection shall not normally be sufficient reason to compromise standards of quality as observed by the museum.
  3. The owner or vendor must warrant ownership and good title in a signed statement, which can be included on the invoice or sale contract, before payment is made.
  4. Unless specifically restricted, and with the exception of deaccession proceeds, acquisition funds may be used to purchase period frames and pedestals.
  5. Acquisition funds, with the exception of deaccession proceeds, may be used to offset the related costs of packing, shipping and insurance. 
  6. Purchase of artwork from any current students, university employees, or an employee’s spouse or family, or advisory board members and Collection Committee members, is prohibited. 


E. Assignment of Credit 

  1. For a donated acquisition, the credit line shall bear the name of the donor(s) unless anonymity is requested.
    • The credit line will be mutually agreed upon by the donor(s) and the director. 

    • Should the donor(s) request the attachment of dedicatory or commemorative language to the credit line, the exact text must be approved by the director.
    • For an acquisition received by bequest, credit lines will read “Bequest of (name of donor).”
    • For an acquisition received from the estate of a donor but not specifically name in a bequest, the credit lines for these gifts will read “Gift of the Estate of (name of deceased).”
    • Credit lines for transfers will read “Transfer from (name of university department).”
  2. Museum staff should endeavor to honor any reasonable and appropriate credit line, including any dedicatory or commemorative language stipulated in the will or communicated to the museum by the personal representative of the estate or by the donor’s immediate family.
  3. For acquisitions purchased wholly or in part with funds derived from the deaccession and sale of an artwork from the collection, the credit line shall appropriately acknowledge the donor and/or funding source of the deaccessioned artwork.
  4. When more than one donor or funding source is used for an acquisition, the names shall be listed in descending order of the magnitude of their contribution. 

    • In cases when the contributions of two or more donors are equal, the order of names shall be alphabetical.
    • When multiple donors or funding sources are so numerous that practical considerations prohibit acknowledging all of them in credit lines, an abbreviated form may be developed jointly by the collection/registration and curatorial staff, subject to approval by the director.
  5. Full credit lines shall be associated with all registration records.
  6. Publications of text or images from the collection must be accompanied by the appropriate credit line supplied by the museum. Reproduction from printed or photographic materials not supplied by the museum is strictly prohibited.

F. Transfers

  1. The museum may accept transfers of artwork from other departments within the University of Colorado System. 
  2. The accession process for transferring an artwork begins when a department’s supervising authority forwards a written offer of transfer to the director or curator. The director, in consultation with the Staff Committee, will either recommend the transfer for approval to the Collection Committee or decline the offer. Because the University of Colorado already owns the artwork, no deed of gift is necessary to complete the legal transaction. Ownership is transferred once the artwork is under the care, custody and control of the museum; the Collection Committee approves the artwork for the collection; and a signed transfer document from the donating department is received.

G. Accessioning and Registration of Approved Acquisition

  1. Collection/registration staff draws up two original copies of a deed of gift for signature by donor and director. Signatures of each owner are required in cases of joint donation credit. Both signed copies are sent to the Provost’s Office for final signature by the provost, as designated representative of the regents of the University of Colorado. The official date of property transfer takes effect once the provost’s signature is complete.
  2. The director will not sign a deed of gift until the donated artwork is in the care, custody and control of the museum. Collection/registration staff completes the Gift in Kind Acceptance Form and sends it along with the appropriate supporting documentation to the University of Colorado Boulder Advancement Department for processing of the appropriate tax forms.
  3. Collection/registration staff shall create and maintain an accession record and physical file for each acquisition, with information acquired from the artist, the donor and as provided by curatorial staff
. The record will be maintained and updated by the collection/registration staff in the museum’s online collection management database (Argus). The physical file will be maintained and updated by the collection/registration staff and stored in the collection registration department offices. Physical files are stored in accession number order.
    • All accessioned artwork receives a unique identification number (accession number) applied to it in a manner that is reversible if required.  Museum staff uses a three-part numbering system, the first two parts of which refer to the accession. The first number is the year the items were received, and the second part is the sequential number assigned to each group received through the year.
    • Collection artwork movement will be tracked by means of accession numbers and using numbered and defined art storage areas through the Argus database movement system.  For further definition and description of the museum art storage areas please see section X. Care of Collection, subsection C. Storage of Artwork.
  4. Once accessioned, artwork shall be photographed for documentary purposes. If professionally photographed, in consideration of payment received, the photographer agrees that the museum is the sole owner of any copyright in all photographs produced at the request of and for the museum. All formats are the property of the museum. Museum staff will endeavor to ensure that the photographer is credited by name in any use of the photographs.
  5. Collection/registration staff will forward a Non-Exclusive License Agreement to the artist or current copyright holder. After the document has been signed, the museum may publish images of the work for publicity, educational and marketing purposes.
  6. For new media art (such as DVD, video art, etc.) accessioned into the collection, collection/registration staff will contact the artist or copyright holder of the artwork to request the right to duplicate the original format for exhibition use. Screening rights for new media art in the collection will be negotiated with the rights holder on a case-by-case basis. As technology advances, and with a good-faith effort to research and consult with artist or copyright holder, obsolete media will be migrated to more stable and accessible formats to preserve the art and maintain accessibility of the new media art in the collection.

H. Documentation

  1. Collection/registration staff shall prepare and preserve accession, deaccession and incoming and outgoing loan records for all artwork in its possession and care. These records shall include instruments of conveyance signed by the donor, temporary custody receipts, adequate descriptions of all artwork involved in an accession, and as complete a documentation and history of the artwork as possible. Any documentation relating to the artist, medium, date, provenance, condition, exhibition and loan history, publication history, conservation history, reasons for valuation, and proof of authenticity of a new accession will be requested from the source.
    • Original records must not leave the collection/registration office.
  2. Artwork acquired must be accompanied by legal documentation of property transfer by means of a deed of gift, bill of sale, copy of a bequestor’s will, or signed, incoming receipt. These documents will provide an adequate description of the artwork being transferred and any conditions of the accession. One original copy of the signed deed of gift and receipt shall be stored in the artwork (object) file for each donation. Copies of invoices, wills or documentation relating to a deaccession exchange shall be stored in their artwork files to document their respective transactions.
  3. Registration information, including current and past locations, values, provenance, and exhibition history for each artwork will be entered into a computer database. Artist biographical information will also be entered into this database.