Diana Gutman, chairwoman of the Art Museum Council at LACMA, says the group’s 40-member board has voted unanimously to stop volunteering at the museum next year because of its plans to triple council members’ fees.
As the museum announced this week, members who once paid a minimum of $400 to participate on various councils (or $450 for this particular council) will be required to pay $1,000 plus a $250-level membership starting next June. The Art Museum Council, which has some 200 members, is one of 10 such museum support groups — the only one raising money for museum acquisitions and exhibitions across the board and not for a specific department.Yikes. It’s been a while since LACMA has had a misstep so it’s not surprising, but dang…3x?!
Well, that’s one way to get rid of your “friends” groups.