MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
A study out today makes the case for scrapping admission fees to art museums. But as NPR's Chloe Veltman reports, going free does not make sense for all museums.
CHLOE VELTMAN, BYLINE: High entry fees are a major reason why people don't go to art museums. Homer Simpson pushed back against any fee in this 1998 episode of "The Simpsons."
(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "THE SIMPSONS")
DAN CASTELLANETA: (As Homer Simpson) What do you mean by suggested donation?
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: (As character) Pay any amount you wish, sir.
CASTELLANETA: (As Homer Simpson) And what if I wish to pay zero?
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: (As character) Well...
VELTMAN: A new study from the think tank Remuseum suggests most museums should be free. Stephen Reily is the founding director.
STEPHEN REILY: Museums are not businesses. They're philanthropic institutions providing a public good for people.
VELTMAN: Reily says if that good is providing public access to art, then museums should be focusing on getting more of the public through their doors.
REILY: The critical question is, what do museums want to subsidize? Do they want to subsidize more art storage, or do they want to subsidize more access for visitors?
VELTMAN: And to get more visitors, free is the magic number. Remuseum's analysis of more than 150 art museums shows that institutions that do not charge admission have a cost per visitor that's around $10 less than those that do. This is particularly true for the many museums in small to midsize municipalities - among them, the Wichita Art Museum in Kansas. Molly McFerson is its director and CEO.
MOLLY MCFERSON: Going to free admission was the right thing for us to do.
VELTMAN: McFerson says the museum did away with its $10 standard entry fee in 2023. The fee amounted to only 1% of the museum's operating budget.
MCFERSON: Before, certainly, we had attendance at big special events, not necessarily people in the galleries looking at the art. Now we have a steady stream every day.
VELTMAN: But nixing entry tickets doesn't make sense for all museums, like, say, if you're the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York and a quarter of your budget comes from ticket sales. General admission is 30 bucks. Scott Rothkopf is the director.
SCOTT ROTHKOPF: On the one hand, that might seem expensive and out of reach to some people. On the other hand, it's still a heavily subsidized price.
VELTMAN: Rothkopf says the museum relies on sources like its donors and endowment to make up the difference. Yet, the Whitney also offers discounts, such as free admission for anyone 25 and under. Rothkopf says these grant-funded programs are successful in reaching new audiences.
ROTHKOPF: Free admission has been a real driver, we've seen, in increasing the youth of our audience.
VELTMAN: Rothkopf says the Whitney has no plans to abandon entry fees entirely, and the Remuseum study doesn't offer solutions for how museums that do decide to stop charging admission might make up for the income loss.
Chloe Veltman, NPR News.
(SOUNDBITE OF MARCOS VALLE, ADRIAN YOUNG & ALI SHAHEED MUHAMMAD SONG, "GOTTA LOVE AGAIN (FEAT. LOREN ODEN)")
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