"Then what might have seemed like whining turned serious"

Jerry Saltz on the controversy surrounding the New Museum's upcoming show of Dakis Joannou's "fabled," incredible" (Saltz's words) collection.

The Art Market Monitor comments here.

Non-profit lawprof Susan Gary says "in my view, the benefits of this show outweigh the conflicts. It sounds like these works of art ... will be of great interest to lovers of modern art." She adds:

"As I read the [New York Times] article, I wondered where the conflict was. Giving the public a chance to view works of art held in a private collection seems like a good idea to me. However, as someone who does not collect art, I had not realized that a museum showing of a private collection will increase the value of those pieces of art. The value of a museum show is of particular importance for modern art, because a show indicates that the pieces are considered 'museum worthy.' So Mr. Joannou's collection will likely increase in value as the result of the show. There is no indication that he plans to sell any of the art anytime soon, but if he does sell some pieces at some point, he may benefit financially from the show."

Or not. As Saltz says, "it is a joke ... to think that Joannou’s collection will increase in value after being shown here. If anything, using three floors of the New Museum will overexpose the art and decrease its value." Put another way, there isn't any doubt that this collection is already "museum worthy."

"A San Francisco artist who was chosen by city officials to paint a mural on Market Street was stabbed last weekend ... while working on the job"

San Francisco Examiner story here.

"Has such a large portion of any other artist's catalogue been stolen or looted?"

Mark Durney looks at Vermeer's art theft track record.

New Lawyers for Fairey

Report from the New York Times here. According to Sergio Muñoz Sarmiento, in granting the request Judge Hellerstein said he had "never seen anything like this" and described Fairey’s conduct as a "serious transgression" -- but added that (like a lot of people) he wants "this case to be decided on the merits."

"What's Wrong With Charitable Giving"

Pablo Eisenberg attempts an answer in the Wall Street Journal. The Nonprofit Law Prof Blog adds some thoughts.

Longtime readers my remember Eisenberg for his argument that the tax deduction for fractional gifts of art should be abolished.

1% Motorcycle Clubs: Under and Alone

Book rating scale:

5: Touched by God - a work which makes Shakespeare look infantile
4: Amazing - Instantly began rereading it and quoting it to friends
3: Worth Every Penny - a solid, interesting read, inspiring some thought and discussion with people who share similar interests
2: I Paid For It So I Finished Reading It - Some interesting parts but if I lose the book I'm not buying another copy
1: Couldn't Force My Way Thru and Burnt the Book in order to send it to the Hell it deserves

I rate this book a 3.6. It's solid, interesting, and informative.

Once upon a time the Mongols MC was became big and violent enough that the federal government decided something had to be done. That something, or rather someone, was William Queen. His job was to infiltrate the Mongols and help bring them down from the inside.

Under and Alone: The True Story of the Undercover Agent Who Infiltrated America's Most Violent Outlaw Motorcycle Gang, is another book which I listened to via audiobook. It's an anecdotal / informative book which has as its main draw entrée into a world which few of us will ever see, the life of a 1% gang.

It's interesting to see how well the gang is actually run and held together. For instance, we are told it has a constitution and that in the late 90's the entire MC decided that they weren't going to beat “Prospects” (new members) anymore and that the rule was mainly followed (except by the one member who was supposed to enforce it throughout the various chapters of the club).

Queen makes contact and enters the gang through the San Fernando chapter. He rises up, becoming a prospect, a fully patched member, and finally an officer. Along the way, we get a feeling for the brotherhood which the members share, the danger they are to anyone who crosses them, their conflicts with Hells Angels, and the constant drug use. I'm not sure if the chapter Queen was in was an average chapter. The book makes it seem to be barely holding together with motorcycles that were falling apart and members not having the werewithall to do much besides hang out. It taxes there very fiber to make the cross country trips required by the mother chapter. In fact, I found myself wondering more than once whether the reason that Queen rose as far as he did in the three years he was under was because he was the only one who had his stuff together. In fact, we're lucky that Queen's on our side because if he had embraced the club entirely he might have led them to do a lot more damage then they were able.

It was an interesting listen. I recommend it to anyone interested in this genre as well as anyone who wants a primer on how 1% gangs work.

Contract Work For Attorneys

Recently, I was talking to some law students who will be graduating next spring about their job search. They expressed concerns regarding finding a job upon graduation, studying and passing the bar, and paying back student loans. I was thinking back to when I graduated law school (which wasn't that long ago) with those some concerns. My boyfriend at the time (now husband) was also looking for the job. He ended up doing some temporary legal work with a company called Hire Counsel. It pays decently, but the work isn't terribly interesting. I know its not the best solution, but it did offer my husband with something substantive to do while looking for a full time position. We have friend who live in DC where there are many more opportunities for contact work for attorneys and if you can speak a second language, it might help you secure a position. Be prepared for boring tasks, long hours, but plenty of dough. (not big firm dough, but enough to live off of anyway) To apply for this kind of work, you have to pass the bar in your state.

Contract work is a good temporary solution, but some worry that if they do it for too long, they'll be unmarketable for other legal positions. Check out this blog post from lateralattorney report.com related to the subject. So if you're ultimate goal is to do anything but contract work for a living, keep pushing out those resumes and go ahead and put that contract work on your resume and highlight skills that your potential employer would benefit from.

I guess some attorneys do contract work to make a living. Check out this ABA article.

P.S. My husband now has a full-time job, no more contract work for him :)