Valparaiso University in Indiana has closed the Brauer Museum of Art and dismissed its director as part of a larger restructuring, ArtDaily reported.
The institution has been embroiled in a scandal related to the museum since February 2023, when officials announced they intended to sell three paintings in order to fund residence hall renovations. At the time, university president José Padilla said the institution was in dire straits due to declining enrollment and a projected $9 million deficit.
The university still intends to move forward with the sale, pending ongoing litigation seeking to stop it on the grounds that it would violate the terms of the university’s agreement with Percy H. Sloan, who donated his father’s works and art collection to the university.
If the university is able to fund freshman dorm renovations, officials have said, they plan to construct a gallery in one of the halls where some of the Sloan Collection will be displayed.
