We probably don't have to remind you that Super Bowl XLIV between the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots is going down this weekend. Being that it is one of the biggest sporting events of the year, a lot of fans will be placing bets on their favorite team to take home the trophy on Sunday. In an unexpected show of support for their respective home teams, the Seattle Art Museum and the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, Mass. decided to place a little bet of their own.
According to Art Daily, the museums have agreed to put their art on the table, each promising to loan the other a major artwork, all shipping fees and expenses paid, should their team lose the big game. Kimerly Rorschach of the Seattle Art Museum has offered up an Albert Bierstadt painting from 1870 titled Puget Sound on the Pacific Coast (above), and Michael Conforti of the Clark Institute has pledged to loan Winslow Homer’s West Point, Prout’s Neck (1900).
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Art museums have a reputation for being classy, cultured institutions, but that hasn't stopped them from having a little fun and trash talking the competition. "I am sure that this beautiful Homer painting will be coming to Seattle after our Seahawks defeat the Patriots for another Super Bowl win," said Rorschach in statement. "We are already making plans to host this incredible work of American art in our galleries so that the 12s (Seahawks fans are called the 12th Men) can enjoy it."
Conforti said that with this friendly wager, "nobody loses...Albert Bierstadt was raised in New Bedford, Massachusetts, so we will be very happy to welcome the work of a native son back to New England following the Patriots’ win on game day."
The museums aren't actually using the art as collateral, they're just loaning them for a short period of time, so there shouldn't be any legal issues with the wager. We think it's a cool way to be involved with the major event, and to build up some press and hopefully get more people into both locations.
[via Art Daily]
