The V&A Dundee reduces major exhibitions to one a year due to increased costs
The V&A Dundee is set to halve the number of major art exhibitions it stages as part of cost-cutting measures.
The Scottish arm of the Victoria and Albert Museum is now expected to stage one major exhibition a year as efforts are made to address costs, which have risen to £7.8million in the last financial year.
The move away from hosting two major shows was first trialled in 2022. Now, a new report sent to the Scottish government revealed it has become a permanent feature of plans for the future.
Leonie Bell, director of the V&A Dundee, echoed that sentiment in Scottish parliament. She said that in the past few years, the design museum had suffered “year on year of mitigating measures,” all of which culminated in the inability to “plan beyond a year ahead.”
The difficulties involved the closure of the building during the pandemic and then adjusting to rising operational costs as it reopened. Bell said the past three years involved “really intense working” and “intense revision” of their programme model.
However, the Scottish government has seen its financial support increase by £800,000 for the upcoming 2024/2025 financial year, which Bell said gave the museum a “fighting chance” as they step away from major shows.
In an interview with The Art Newspaper, Bell optimistically said: “We see this as a positive step. This change allows us to focus the financial and staff resource that we have on delivering world-class exhibitions which are available to visitors for longer, for those travelling to Dundee from across the UK and internationally, and for repeat local visits.”
