Cedar Rapids Museum of Art Combats Tough Economy
Cedar Rapids, Iowa—The Cedar Rapids Museum of Art is responding to the prolonged effects of the slow economic recovery by stepping up its fundraising efforts and by trimming its budget.
Taste for Art is a series of unique fundraising events that are planned for the coming year, including jazz brunches, art auctions, food and wine events, dance parties, and more. Proceeds from the series will help the Museum continue to develop innovative exhibitions and educational programs. For more information on these events, visit the Museum’s website at www.crma.org.
Among the cost saving measures, the Museum is trimming some public hours. Starting November 2, 2010, the Museum will not open until noon on weekdays, for a total hours reduction of about twenty percent. According to Executive Director Terry Pitts, the reduced hours are a direct consequence of a decrease in income from the Museum’s endowment. “The endowment fund consists of a broad portfolio of investments, from which we withdraw only 5% each year for our operating needs. When those investments are down, it is really challenging to absorb the budget reductions that result. Nevertheless, the Board and the staff are working creatively to offset this revenue decrease through a combination of additional fundraising and some budget trimming. We’re committed to limiting reductions in public programs as much as possible.”
Pitts says “the Museum is quite healthy in all respects except for the reduced income from its endowment.” In fact, this past summer, thanks to support from three corporate partners – United Fire Group, Cedar Rapids Bank & Trust, and Skogman Companies – the Museum of Art was able to offer free admission for two months. The result was a 120% rise in attendance.
Pitts is not predicting when weekday morning hours will be restored. “We’re watching our investments closely, just as is everyone who has a stock portfolio or a retirement account, but this may take some time.”
The Museum’s new hours will be: Tuesday noon – 4, Wednesday noon – 4, Thursday noon – 8, Friday noon – 4, Saturday 10 – 4, and Sunday noon – 4. Visitors 18 and under are always free and visitors of all ages can still come to the Museum free of charge on Thursday evenings between 4 and 8. Volunteer docents and education staff will still be able to accommodate school tours during the morning hours. Hours at the Grant Wood Studio will remain unchanged.
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The mission of the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art is to excite, engage and educate our community and visitors through our collection, exhibitions and programs. The Museum’s collection contains more than 5,800 works of art by hundreds of artists, including the world's largest collection of works by Grant Wood. For more information on exhibitions or related programs call the Museum at 319.366.7503 or visit the Museum's web site at www.crma.org.