“Right now, all I know is that we have lost a couple of pieces.”
Joel Westphal is Deputy Director of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum and Library.
“The one bear that we had “Honey Shine,” I believe the artist just simply moved his piece out. I don't know if he moved it to another location or not.”
Westphal says if a government shutdown does occur, as federal buildings the museum and the Ford Presidential Library in Ann Arbor will likely have to shut their doors too.
“That of course means that no one, starting on Wednesday morning, will be able to enter the Ford Museum to look at any of our art we have here.”
The museum hosts 50 ArtPrize entries, several in the running for top prizes if they get enough public votes. Many artists are now moving to the Morton Gallery to be sure the public has access. Westphal notes this has happened before.
“The last time, one of the previous winners that we had here, “Love Lesson” in 2013, actually won the half million-dollar public vote during the middle of a government shut down.”
Westphal says the number of ArtPrize visitors this year has been fantastic.
“Far better than last year's attendance. In fact, on Saturday we had more than 10,000 people.”
Visitors can check the ArtPrize website to see if entries have moved from the Ford Museum to a new location.
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