Art Rental, Fall 2009

Beautiful weather last Wednesday night was a welcome occurrence for the student art aficionados who camped out in and around the Allen Memorial Art Museum’s courtyard for a chance to take home one (or two) of the 348 works   available for renting this term. Students began camping out before noon on Wednesday, the day before rental began, says Selina Bartlett, the museum’s assistant registrar.

The museum began admitting students on a first-come, first-served basis at 9 a.m. The rental was scheduled to end at 4:30 p.m., but the last work of art left the building more than four and a half hours earlier, at 11:50 a.m. “There was still quite a line outside,” says Selina.

Founded in 1940 by Ellen Johnson, the Art Rental Program allows Oberlin students and members of the community to rent two original works of art each semester. With works by such artists as Toulouse-Lautrec, Picasso, and Red Grooms, the rental collection has something for everyone.

Photos by Ma'ayan Plaut ’10