The world of major cultural philanthropy often views historic gifts as simply acts of self-promotion and impressive architecture. We like to think that when a billionaire makes an enormous donation to a world-famous organisation, it is done purely for the purpose of putting his name up on a beautiful marble wall.
However, such a limited view fails to account for the elaborate operations that the public education system needs to go through. Before an extensive governmental organisation manages to make changes to its facilities or launch new exhibits, it will have to go through years of planning and capital renovations.
