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"I am invited" ????? SPAM???

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Author	Topic: "I am invited" ????? SPAM???
Just-Curious unregistered	posted 03-19-2004 03:49 PM Have you seen/gotten what might be SPAM which starts out: quote: "As Vice President of Research of xxxx-deleted-xxxx, and founding Curator of American Decorative Arts and Sculpture at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston for nearly thirty years, and more than a decade of curatorial work at the Winterthur Museum in Delaware, I am invited to comment on selected objects at forthcoming auctions at important international and regional houses like Christie's, Sotheby's, and Pook & Pook to name a few." My questions: Does anyone know who invited him to comment? "I am invited to comment ....." Is this something the Auction Houses are behind? Is it appropriate and/or ethical for someone even loosely associated (past, present or future) with the MFAB or Winterthur to be promoting auction items? To me it just doesn't feel right, so into the trash it goes. IP: Logged
Vi Posts: 17 Registered: Jul 99	posted 03-19-2004 11:40 PM I have received the same email and have no idea if it is legitimate or questionable. Vi IP: Logged
Vi Posts: 17 Registered: Jul 99	posted 03-19-2004 11:48 PM PS I did think the email you are questioning came from the Artfact that is an internet program that appraisers use. I thought it was quite expensive to join and none of the writers listings pertained to silver so I just did not reply. Vi IP: Logged
Paul Lemieux Posts: 1792 Registered: Apr 2000	posted 03-20-2004 01:19 AM I began receiving similar or identical emails after I signed up for a free one day trial of Artfact (a site that compiles auction listings & prices from around the country). It wasn't worth the $$ for me to subscribe permanently so I didn't. I think they are just pestering us to join. IP: Logged
Ulysses Dietz Moderator Posts: 1265 Registered: May 99	posted 03-22-2004 09:07 AM Hmmm...from the SPAM it would appear to be Jonathan Fairbanks, who was very badly treated by the MFA after a lifetime's career there. Technically, since he is a former curator, and both the MFA Boston and his Winterthur credentials give him much deserved status in the world of American antiques, there is no ethical reason that he can't trade on his training and his experience. He would not be the first decorative arts scholar to shift form the museum world to the commercial world. It would be out of the question if he were still employed by a museum - this is clearly written into the American Association of Museums code of ethics. That's why I, as a curator, cannot appear on the Antiques Road Show, except (were it to happen) as a "side bar" curatorial moment. Curators may not give monetary values nor can we officially "authenticate" objects. We can only offer opinions, based on our experience. Curators may also not buy and sell objects (i.e. deal) while employed as curators, and they should not collect in a way that would compete with their employer (which usually means that they have to offer anything they buy for themselves to the Museum for which they work, at cost, before they can keep it). Thus, while it might be a little sad that a great curator such as Jonathan has been forced to shill for auction houses (whose ethics are not, as we all know, 100%), there is absolutely no reason that he shouldn't cash in on his expertise - any more than amateur sports heroes shouldn't cash in on product endorsements. IP: Logged
Just-Curious unregistered	posted 03-22-2004 10:17 AM Thanks. You have given me a broader perspective... Since I didn't invite his oppinion - I still feel it is SPAM. But now instead of slamming it into the trash, I will respect his right to make a living and gently place it into the receptical. IP: Logged
Scott Martin Forum Master Posts: 11520 Registered: Apr 93	posted 03-22-2004 10:38 AM Its a lengthy document with tiny type but if you are interested here is a link to the American Association of Museums (AAM) CODE OF ETHICS FOR MUSEUMS 2000. IP: Logged

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