As for exhibitions, the museum plans to put together more topical shows, like the current "The High Line," Apr. 20-Oct. 31, 2005 [see www.highline.org/design]. Among the other shows on the lineup:

* "Friedlander," June 5-Aug. 29, 2005, organized by Peter Galassi, surveys the long career of the prolific American photographer Lee Friedlander (b. 1934) via more than 500 works organized into about 75 groups -- possibly the largest photo show ever. Several years ago, MoMA acquired 1,000 works from Friedlander, selecting 868 and taking a rain check for the remaining 132. "I have a feeling the final works are about to be chosen," Galassi said. "And then we'll be behind again."

* "Pioneering Modern Painting: Cézanne and Pissarro 1865-1885," June 26-Sept. 12, 2005, organized by Joachim Pissarro, presents approximately 45 works by each artist from the period when the two artists worked side-by-side in Pontoise and Auvers. The show travels to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the Musée d'Orsay in Paris.

* "New Work/New Acquisitions," June 29-Sept. 26, 2005, organized by Ann Temkin in collaboration with the museum curatorial staff, features approximately 20 works purchased with the 21st Century Fund, recently established by the museum trustees to buy new art (putting an upper limit of $50,000 on any single acquisition). Among the artists on view are Paul Chan, Mark Grotjahn, Fan Lijun, Rivane Neuenschwander, Neo Rauch, Thomas Scheibitz, Gillian Wearing and Andrea Zittel.

* "Safe: Design Takes on Risk," Oct. 16, 2005-Jan. 2, 2006, organized by Paola Antonelli, presents some 300 objects, from lifeguard stations to band-aids, that are designed to respond to emergencies or to protect the body and mind from danger or stress. Originally conceived with the working title "Emergency," the show was recast after the events of 9/11.

* "Elizabeth Murray," Oct. 23, 2005-Jan. 9., 2006, organized by Robert Storr, features about 75 works by the pioneering New Image painter.

* "Beyond the Visible: The Art of Odilon Redon," Oct. 30, 2005-Jan. 23, 2006, organized by Jodi Hauptman, highlighting the Ian Woodner Family Collection's 2000 gift to the museum of more than 100 works by the artist.

* "Pixar," Dec. 14, 2005-Feb. 6, 2006, organized by Steven Higgins and Ron Magliozzi, features the original artworks that go into making the animated films of the celebrated digital studio. All six Pixar features, from Toy Story (1995) to The Incredibles (2004) are to be screened in the MoMA theater.

Further into the future are an Edvard Munch retrospective, a huge Dada survey, a Brice Marden retrospective and a show of "Comic Abstraction."

At the press breakfast, the museum also announced the appointment of Peter Reed, curator in the department of architecture and design, to the post of senior deputy director for curatorial affairs, a new permanent position that is designed to provide liaison between MoMA's curatorial and administrative departments.

Finally, in response to a question from Lee Rosenbaum, a reporter for the Wall Street Journal, Lowry noted that during the construction of its new building MoMA had purchased several contiguous plots of land to the west of the museum; MoMA now owns a block-through lot that includes Connelly's, a pub on West 54th Street, but that is otherwise empty.

Several developers have approached the museum with building proposals that would provide MoMA with still more gallery space in a commercial or residential skyscraper. Lowry pointed out that Taniguchi had anticipated this possibility in his MoMA design, and made provisions for possible growth westward -- but Lowry also indicated that the museum was in no hurry to embark on still another expansion.

Back in 2001, Lehmann gave Haye $75,000 in return for first choice of works by gallery artists, including Mehretu. For some reason (which continues to mystify art-world insiders), Haye never followed through on the deal, though he sold many Mehretu works to other dealers and collectors. When Lehmann finally resorted to the courts, he won an award of $1.7 million, a sum that the judge arrived at by subtracting the sale price of all the Mehretu works Lehmann could have bought from their current estimated value.

Haye said he relauched his gallery in an effort to make "a new start." Such a maneuver seems unlikely to insulate him from the court judgment, however, particularly since the new business is substantially the same as the old. Thus, the escrow account. As for Lehmann, he says that all he really wants is for Haye to sell him some major works by Mehretu.

For instance, the AAMD would approve of museum acquisitions of ancient art objects -- even with unclear provenance -- if the work is in danger of destruction, or if the acquisition might help preserve the work and allow research into its history. The new code also sets a time frame of ten years, saying that a museum could acquire an ancient artifact of uncertain provenance if it had been outside its country of origin for ten years or more. According to the AAMD, the ten-year time period is sufficiently long that it doesn't provide a direct incentive for looting or illegal excavation. For details, see the AAMD website at www.aamd.org.