NYC Financing for Arts Programs to Drop 31 Percent

New York City's Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg will put into affect a new budget on July 1st, which will cut financing to arts program by 31% for the upcoming fiscal year. The change has affected a number of arts locations around the city, including major venues such as the Museum of Modern Art.

Harold Holzer, spokesman for the museum, stated, "Our budget planning will be challenged deeply. We have not calculated how we would recover the millions of dollars in cuts to operating funding."

The city will also have a smaller amount of funds in order to cover the deficit than they have in years past. "I don't think I can remember a more difficult time for cultural institutions in New York City," said Ellen V. Futter, president of the American Museum of Natural History. "Many are experiencing record attendance at the same time that funding from the city has been drastically reduced."

To read the full article from the New York Times, click here.

The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been singularly important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world. The museum's collection offers an unparalleled overview in modern and contemporary art, including works of architecture and design, drawings, painting, sculpture, photography, prints, illustrated books and artist's books, film, and electronic media.

MoMA's library and archives hold over 300,000 books, artist books, and periodicals, as well as individual files on more than 70,000 artists. The archives contain primary source material related to the history of modern and contemporary art. It also houses an award-winning fine dining restaurant, The Modern, run by Alsace-born chef Gabriel Kreuther.