2010.07.25
Share your thoughts about Sunday’s story on the Taubman Museum of Art (UPDATED)
UPDATE: You can download a copy of the tax return by clicking here.
UPDATE PART 2: You can download a copy of the Taubman’s audit by clicking here.
Photos by Eric Brady: Museum patrons view a collection of American art last month at the Taubman Museum of Art in downtown Roanoke.
Today I have a story on The Roanoke Time’s front page called “‘It’s been a struggle’” (click to read) — with the read-in, as we call them, stating “Recently released documents provide details of the downtown Roanoke art museum’s first-year finances. In response, board leaders speak candidly about the challenges of running the museum — and the energy and ideas infused by new Director David Mickenberg.”
I hope folks here will take the time to look at the story in depth. The print edition contains some detailed graphics that further illustrate how the museum has evolved over the years and what contributed to the rocky shoals the institute encountered after it launched.
Putting this story together had its challenges, because the most recent hard documents available to look at come from the first fiscal year during which the Taubman Museum opened its doors. (By the way, those documents are to be available for download from this website. I’ll update this entry when they are.) Yet as of this month the museum has actually started its third fiscal year operating as the Taubman.
I want to note that, though non-profits are required by law to release their federal 990 tax forms to anyone who requests them, there is no requirement that the museum release its external audit. The steps that current executive director David Mickenberg has taken, authorizing the release of that audit, and pledging to release the museum’s new budget when it’s ready, all with the blessings of the board, are quite commendable, positive movement in the right direction.
The museum's atrium is frequently used for special events, including concerts and wedding receptions. Special events and rentals generated nearly $442,000 in the museum's first fiscal year.
I’m going to share some personal thoughts here that wouldn’t have been a good fit for the news story proper. One is my impression that, though the Taubman Museum definitely has not had it easy, in part because of bad economic luck and in part because of miscalculation, the organization is not in as terrible shape as many seem to assume. Anecdotally, I’ve found that when I mention in conversation that I’m working on a story about the museum’s finances, there seems to be an assumption that I’m about to reveal that the museum is shutting down, or if not that, something else woeful.
Certainly, they’re not staying open by coasting. However, you can see from the numbers in today’s paper that even after that troubled first year, with its $6.8 million in expenses, the museum finished $4 million in the black. The final numbers from FY2009-10, which likely won’t be available for months yet, might well show that things got worse before they got better, and that “getting better” isn’t precisely the same thing as financially rock-solid. Nonetheless, the museum is still here. What this highlights, to me, is that the Taubman has, in addition to its other challenges, a sizable public relations problem to overcome.
Some things I don’t believe can be pinned on the museum. To this day there are folks in Roanoke who seem convinced that the Taubman was a city project. The city did pledge $4 million to the museum back in 2000 — a lot of money for you and me, but not atypical in terms of what Roanoke will devote to a project — but aside from an additional $2 million from the state, the remaining $60 million the museum raised for its capital campaign came from private donations.
But, I also have to think that this assumption of bad news I’ve mentioned resulted at least in part from a long period after the November 2008 opening when we kept hearing about layoffs but no hard figures were available. Now, we’ve got some, and that’s all to the good.
Read the story? So what do you think? Sound off.
excellent article. lets see how long it takes for the budget to be made public. would be nice to know what % of pledges have been collected. keep up the good work
Comment by bill jones — July 25, 2010 @ 9:22 am
Thanks, Bill!
Comment by mikeallen — July 25, 2010 @ 9:42 am
While the building is asymmetrical, the Board and business model is not.
Until they answer “why us, why now, and why should anyone care?” it will be expensive.
Comment by Richard Formato — July 25, 2010 @ 11:39 am
As a parent, I was put off in the very beginning because instead of building the museum inward out, the city only cared about the “look” and architecture of the outside instead of what was really needed or wanted on the inside. Many families would have liked to have seen an imax theatre. By the way, the exit door would have only been through the museum.
Comment by Whit — July 25, 2010 @ 12:26 pm
Hey, Whit, I did mention in this post that it wasn’t a city-driven project. However, your point is certainly interesting.
Comment by mikeallen — July 25, 2010 @ 3:41 pm
This is an early sign of the fact that the museum will be another financial pittfall like all other city projects. Everything they build at the taxpayer’s expense “this one at the tune of 11 million” in taxpayer dollars will be begging for donations for a long time. I wonder how the city can tell a man he cant put a shingled roof on his house because it doesnt “fit in” with the housing architecture and then build this eyesore. I personally hope it ends up bankrupt and then leveled to the ground.
Comment by Mike — July 25, 2010 @ 4:52 pm
Mike, it seems to me like you’re conflating some unrelated issues — and there’s that misconception about city funds again — and I find myself questioning whether it would be in anyone’s best interest for the Taubman Museum to end up bankrupt, much less any other cultural institution here.
However, it is clear that for the Taubman to keep functioning it will need to maintain a near constant search for contributions, so questions about how deep the region’s donation pool goes are certainly valid to raise.
Comment by mikeallen — July 25, 2010 @ 6:24 pm
They lost a lot of community support when they changed the name. Just sayin’…
Comment by Art Hill — July 25, 2010 @ 11:12 pm
Great article! I believe that the key to increasing the revenue within the museum is to have it be MORE than just a museum. The Taubman always had a good response when it held events like their new year’s eve event, tattoo fashion shows, and things like that. The Taubman should hold monthly events like that, and not only will it help increase revenue, but it’ll also give the people a reason to go to the museum, gain interest, and visit during normal business hours.
The only way for the Taubman to get that kind of interest is to MAKE that kind of interest.
Comment by Jàmore — July 26, 2010 @ 8:09 am
Thanks, Jason!
As I mentioned in the story, they’ll be open free this coming Saturday with events to promote their photography exhibit “Posing Beauty in African American Culture.” We’ll have more details on those events this coming week.
Comment by mikeallen — July 26, 2010 @ 11:41 am
[...] Last month, I published a story taking a look at the museum’s finances and some of its plans for the future (click here to read), and also offered additional comments here. [...]
Pingback by Arts & Extras: Regional arts community information and its quirky culture – roanoke.com » Today’s breaking arts news: Taubman Museum of Art lays off four staff members — August 24, 2010 @ 12:08 pm
Sorry…I am a little late finding the article, but wanted to put in my 2 cents worth. I am a Roanoke native, who moved away about 10 years ago, but visits on a monthly basis. I have to say I am not at all shocked by the current financial state of the museum. I suppose I should include in this that I have been against this project since its inception. I am not a hater of the arts; in fact I hold an arts degree and support various arts organizations where I live. What I am against is a city that tries so hard to be something it is not instead of embracing what there already is. From the plan, the design and execution I can find nothing about this building to embrace. The design is simply architecture of the moment and in 20 to 30 years will look dated. Roanoke as a whole barely supported or cared about the art museum when it was located at Center in the Square. How could anyone think that a huge new (and half empty) building was going to suddenly energize the interest in art in Roanoke? The former gallery was even, at times, free or charged a very modest fee. Most people in Roanoke are not going to pay the cost of a ticket to visit a museum and I don’t think that school field trips are going to be able to provide full funding for the Taubman. I am not trying to sell Roanokers short, as I still consider myself to be one. I have been to the Taubman and for the price I just can’t say I saw the value. I would rather get in my car and drive to DC or even Richmond to see larger collections for the same amount or less. Clearly many residents of the valley feel the same, hence the current struggles. The bottom line is that the organization behind the museum tried to apply their own interests to the city/valley as a whole instead of looking at Roanoke for what the city really is and what it can realistically support. Now they have an eyesore of a building that is bleeding money.
Comment by AKC — August 24, 2010 @ 1:49 pm