The Museum of Contemporary Art has been free to the public for decades, but a funding crisis means it will begin charging a $20 admission fee.
sydney The museum, which houses the only public collection dedicated to the work of living artists in Australia, attracts approximately one million visitors each year.
The MCA’s striking Art Deco-style building in The Rocks on the banks of Sydney Harbor is a popular attraction and one of the drawcards during the annual Vivid festival.
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MCA President Lorraine Tarabay said, “We are disappointed to introduce general admission fees, however we want to ensure that MCA Australia remains the world-class contemporary art museum that Sydney deserves.”
He said that government-owned museums were funded to support free access, but the MCA, run by an independent non-profit organization, received a fraction of the money given to other institutions.
“We are grateful to the government for their continued support, however this step has been necessitated by the significant increase in costs combined with stagnant funding,” Tarabay said.
MCA Australia will introduce charges from the end of January but says it wants to maintain free entry for children under 18 and Australian students.
According to the museum, ongoing government funding of $4.36 million pays 14 percent of operating costs, while 85 percent of annual revenue comes through donations and commercial activities.
“I think because the MCA has been so successful, it’s so present, it’s so visible, people assume we’re funded out of taxpayers’ pockets like other museums, but we’re not,” said director Suzanne Cotter. .
He said the Creative Australia funding on which the museum had depended for a decade had not been renewed in 2024.
Cotter said that at the state level, operating funding had been stagnant since 2008, and any increases had not kept pace with inflation and cost increases.
A NSW Government spokesperson said the museum received more than $7 million in direct and in-kind funding from the state in 2024.
Earlier in 2024, Create NSW and federal funding body Create Australia launched an independent review to identify where savings could be made.
A NSW Government spokesperson said, “As with any significant investment by the Government, the review recommends MCA prepare a fully justified business case to support its request for additional support.” “Includes transparent financial assumptions and cost initiatives.”
Cotter said the museum had already provided a comprehensive business case and financial information and implemented cost-saving measures such as closing one day a week.
More than one third of the MCA’s collection of over 4700 artworks are by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists.
It has also helped launch the careers of artists such as Lindy Lee and Tracy Moffatt.
