Big Three Carmakers Pledge $26 Million to Save Detroit Art

General Motors, Ford and Chrysler have agreed to contribute a combined $26 million to help Detroit keep artwork owned by the bankrupt city's Detroit Institute of Arts.

A separate state of Michigan plan will shield the museum by turning it into a nonprofit institution. The facility's 66,000-piece collection with a value estimated in excess of $1 billion has been targeted for a possible asset sale on behalf of the city's creditors.

Michigan is contributing $195 million to the museum plan.