Night black at Swedish museums

The Corona crisis hits hard on the Central Museums in Sweden, which are fully or partially funded by the state. It strikes hardest against those who depend on their entrance fees.

Recently, Skansen in Stockholm went out with an emergency call, and next in turn was the neighbor Vasa Museum. Now the nearby Nordic Museum and the Technical Museum are also appealing for state aid.

-We are all four dependent on our entrance fees, not least we. Our state budget is 40 percent of our budget, the rest is self-generated. We need an extra grant from the state - and we need it now, says Peter Skogh, museum director at the Technical Museum.

The Vaasa, Nordic and Technical Museum have had to close completely because of the epidemic, which has caused a hole in their economy. Skansen is still open, but gaping empty.

The Central Museums Cooperation Council has an agreed meeting with the Ministry of Culture, where the difficult situation is to be presented, but the meeting will only take place on April 17. Peter Skogh believes that message must come earlier.

-We need to know within the next few days. The museum is closed, it is dark and we have closed by heat. We have canceled all activities for the rest of the year and the staff has gone down in working hours, all to reduce costs, he says and continues:

-But April is one of our most important months, it will be a black hole whether we receive an extra grant or not.

The Nordic Museum also wants faster information. The museum has a state grant of 60 percent, the rest of the money comes from the museum's operations at Djurgården in Stockholm and in other parts of Sweden.

-The Chairman of the Cooperation Council gets three minutes on April 17, but then he will speak for all of us. We have no opportunity to present our situation, and it differs from those that are fully funded by the state, ”says Sanne Houby-Nielsen, board member of the Nordic Museum Foundation, and continues:

-We manage the money we get from the state, we have a good annual report and good liquidity. But the corona virus has knocked our feet off us. We don't usually cry wolf unnecessarily, but now we are appealing to the government.