When stories come up about museums unethically acquiring work for their collections, the plot often centers on things like art looted by Nazis in the early 20th century, or cultural artifacts from civilizations that have been raided by colonial armies. These stories are tied up in legacies of white supremacy and the ongoing desires of wealthy Europeans and Americans to assert their status by displaying these stolen items.

We hear less often about unethical acquisition practices when it comes to contemporary art. And yet, even today, it’s not always the case that museums are acting above reproach.

In this episode, we hear from interdisciplinary artist Fields Harrington, who unwittingly became one of a large group of artists whose work was collected by the Whitney Museum of American Art. It’s a story that’s wrapped up with national fights for racial justice that flared during the pandemic, and it’s also a story of how challenging it can be to resolve these problems once they’ve been created.