A noted art collector has sold a prized 1962 painting for US$165m to start a criminal justice reform fund in the US.
Agnes Gund sold the 1962 Roy Lichtenstein painting titled “Masterpiece” for a whopping US$165m, which places it among the 15 most expensive pieces of art ever sold,
according to The New York Times,
Gund used $100m from the sale to establish the Art for Justice Fund, launched on 12 June at the Museum of Modern Art. The fund will support criminal justice reform and seeks to reduce mass incarceration in the US.
“This is one thing I can do before I die,” Gund, 78, said. “This is what I need to do.”
The fund will be administered by the Ford Foundation, which will make donations to organisations and leaders with proven track records in advancing reform in criminal justice.
Gund hopes that other collectors will chip in another US$100m to the fund in the next five years. She is challenging other collectors to use their resources for the common good.
“The larger idea is to raise awareness among a community of art collectors that they can use their influence and their collections to advance social justice,” said Darren Walker, president of the Ford Foundation. “Art has meaning on a wall, but it also has meaning when it is monetized.”
Billionaire hedge fund manager Steve Cohen bought the painting.
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