hyde or die

Remember toward the end of 2008 when MOCA had negative money and were flayling around and everyone was panicking and then Super Eli came to the rescue? Well, the LA Times is now reporting that the Attorney General found that not only were they very good at going broke, they were very good at breaking laws!

Instead of reducing spending, MOCA paid some of its bills with money from endowments that donors had earmarked for other purposes, Johns found; she noted that the law requires either that nonprofits get written permission from donors before using restricted endowments in other ways, or that they obtain court orders overriding the restrictions. “The withdrawals we reviewed did not follow this standard,” Johns wrote.

…

As a consequence, MOCA was ordered to take two “required corrective actions” — hiring a consultant to help it come up with newer and better financial procedures, and special training for all museum board members “to ensure that they fully understand their fiduciary duties.”

via…

Well, this should be interesting to watch. Deitch is on his way over. They are now going to have to hire consultants. I haven’t heard if they are still having that fundraiser at Blum + Poe, but that’s not good.

I have to wonder if they are just counting on more attendence and interest because they have their hearts set on Eli Broad having his museum downtown and having that fix a lot of their publicity woes.  Now that Beverly Hills has bowed out of the competition, it’s only DTLA and Santa Monica going head to head.  Where the ball stops, nobody knows.

April 16, 2010, 9:48am  

Curbed LA is reporting that he has (Downtown LA), his foundation is reporting that he hasn’t.

What do you say, let’s start a pool on when he will finally announce it and what the location will be?

I say, Thursday and Downtown LA.  The allure of his buddy Deitch at MOCA is too strong.  Also, he just sunk $30 million into saving MOCA, so he might as well bring even more visitors to the area with the allure of seeing 2 contemporary museums in one trip.

Clarification: The location choices are Santa Monica, Beverly Hills and Downtown.

March 17, 2010, 10:46am  

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