hyde or die

Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles Relaunches After Recession-Era Rescue

LOS ANGELES, CA (REUTERS).- Brought back from the brink of financial ruin by a philanthropist’s $30 million gift, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles celebrates its turnaround this weekend with the most ambitious exhibition of its own iconic collection.

More than 500 works by the likes of Piet Mondrian, Mark Rothko, Jackson Pollock, Jeff Koons and Jean-Michel Basquiat have been selected from MOCA’s 6,000 works, considered one of the world’s top collections of post-World War II art.

“MOCA’s First Thirty Years” marks the museum’s 30th anniversary — a milestone that might not have happened had Eli Broad not come to the rescue.

Many U.S. museums have fallen on tough times in the worst economic downturn in decades, some forced to sell works to survive.

“We were among the first institutions to be hit very hard and very early and we are among the first to be saved in this process,” said MOCA chief curator Paul Schimmel.

Broad, a renowned modern art collector and philanthropist who created KB Home homebuilders, offered $30 million to get MOCA out of financial straits if others came forward. In just 10 months, an additional $30 million was raised.

“This is the biggest turnaround of any art institution, whether it is performing arts or the visual arts, if you think of all that has happened in the last year,” Broad said Thursday as he admired a 1939 Mondrian, MOCA’s earliest work. read more here…

Here we see Paul Schimmel (love!) and Eli Broad ($$) in the last room of the new exhibition at the downtown location of MOCA standing in front of some very nice Ed Moses paintings, probably talking about what a smashing success they need this exhibition going to be.

I hope it is, and I hope that other museums and institutions take a cue from MOCA and do more exhibitions highlighting the permanent collections.  Visiting shows are nice, and can definitely be exciting and a treat, but it is very reassuring and comforting (and pride-inducing) to know that pieces like these reside in your home town, permanently, because an institution you support felt that it was important to acquire said pieces.

November 16, 2009, 3:49pm  

» MOCA announces fundraising milestone, new (and returning) trustees

The Museum of Contemporary Art, revealed to be in dire financial straits late last year, said today that it has raised nearly $60 million since December, hailing the figure as indication of a turnaround at the institution.

The downtown museum has also coaxed two disgruntled trustees who quit during the fallout to rejoin the board.

The fundraising total includes December’s $30 million pledge from the Broad Foundation; $16.4 million in trustee gifts; $3 million from individual patrons, $6.7 million from the museum’s annual fund and $3.8 in trustee dues — a total of $59.9 million.

This is really good news. This article is also very funny to me on multiple levels. I can’t tell you what they are, but just know I giggled throughout the ENTIRE thing.

September 25, 2009, 11:06am  

» MOCA Raises $57 Million, Contributes $8.5 Million to Endowment Assets

I guess today is MOCA day?

The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (MOCA), has raised nearly $57 million in the last six months, and the museum’s Board of Trustees voted June 25 to contribute $4.25 million to MOCA’s endowment assets, which will be matched by The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation, for a total $8.5 million contribution. Additionally, the Board elected three new trustees and its officers for 2010.

Since December 2008, MOCA has undertaken an aggressive fundraising campaign, raising $56.9 million, including $15 million from The Broad Foundation for exhibition support over five years and $15 million from The Broad Foundation to match contributions that replenish the endowment. Other notable gifts include $16.4 million from trustees, in addition to their $1.9 million in annual giving, and $3 million in individual gifts from patrons.

Congrats guys, way to finally get your act together.  Empahsis on FINALLY.

June 29, 2009, 11:00am  

Eli Broad to MOCA’s rescue and stuff by using the unpredictable CHARM OFFENSIVE!!!!

Eli Broad, the billionaire Los Angeles philanthropist and property magnate, launched a charm offensive to save the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art (LA Moca) at Art Basel this week, following a high-level awareness-raising event at the Venice Biennale last week. via…

This is not new news, Broad has been on the record about helping out MOCA for quite a bit, but this new charm offensive tactic is brilliant. No one will see it coming, probably because no one knows what it is or if it even exists as a true tactical strategy.

June 11, 2009, 3:07pm  

» LACMA proposing to take over MOCA...

Proposals are on the table, MOCA trustees are wary of BROAD, and Michael Govan is seeming a little greedy this holiday season.  I agree with Tyler Green, that this is sloppy, a travestee and the MOCA board is the worst museum board acting right now and the fact that not even one person in Los Angeles is stepping up to try and SOLVE this clusterfuck (excuse my french) is absolutely absurd to me.  We may not be the biggest players here, but if I had some money, like I know many people in this town do, and wanted to get in, this is the chance.  Step up, write a check, get on the board and get your friends to donate.  Someone throw a lavish, last minute silent auction/$10,000 a plate dinner for MOCA, people will come because everyone knows that if there is one thing people in LA love…it’s to have their pictures taken at events.

UPDATE: Christopher Knight (LA Times) trying to reason with MOCA Board “Better to go with the devil you know then the devil you don’t”.  I couldn’t agree more.  I hope someone on the board pays attention to this and starts taking some sort of action.

December 17, 2008, 8:30am  

» Eli Broad says no strings attached to MOCA offer...

$30 million now and he might match what the raise next year.  Sure, why not. 

That means (off the top of my head) he has donated close to $100 million to LACMA and MOCA in 2008. 

December 03, 2008, 3:54pm  

» Guess who wants to save MOCA now?

Seriously, just guess…just one guess.  You are right, it IS Eli Broad.  I mean, I know it’s obvious, this is his year.  He’s throwing his money around art instutions in ‘08 like it’s going out of style.  Though, in classic Broad style, it comes with a catch:

Eli Broad, the billionaire philanthropist who is one of this city’s biggest arts patrons, has offered $30 million to help rescue the financially beleaguered Museum of Contemporary Art if the museum’s trustees and other patrons also step up their donations.

Here’s the thing, I’m not trying to be callous or anything, but why would I want to throw money (no matter how much I love MOCA) at a museum that has obviously really mishandled their money for such a long time?  I mean, it’s not like they haven’t had some obscenely successful shows as of late.  Murakami comes to mind, and if you don’t remember that one you must have been in one of those crazy science labs in Antartica because those little happy flowers were EVERYWHERE.  That being said, I don’t want to see MOCA go under or have to sell any of their amazing collection (or merge with LACMA, their programming just wouldn’t meld), but I feel like that the trustees and benefactors should be demanding some sort of accounting ledgers and be insisting that some key staff need to be replaced for others who are more fiscally shrewd* and more capable to raise money and sustain the level of donors to keep MOCA out of this situation in the future.  

*But not Paul Schimmel because I love him and I think he is the heart of MOCA. 

November 24, 2008, 10:07am