South Seas, a resort on Florida's Captiva Island, has purchased Robert Rauschenberg's 22-acre property, including his studio and beachfront, for $45 million. The Robert Rauschenberg Foundation sold the estate, citing unsustainable maintenance costs and the need to focus on its core mission, despite the property having survived Hurricane Ian.
The sale marks the end of the renowned Rauschenberg residency program, which hosted over 500 artists since 2012. Local community groups have condemned the sale as a betrayal of Rauschenberg's legacy of protecting the island from development. The resort plans to integrate the buildings and offer art programming, transforming a key site of American artistic production into a commercial venture.