The National Center for Art Research (NCAR), established as a new arm of the Independent Administrative Institution National Museum of Art, marked its inauguration with the symposium “National Art Museums Today,” at which future ideals for present-day national art museums were discussed. Directors and policymakers from national art museums in the U.K., France, the U.S., Singapore, and Japan participated in the symposium, which was an excellent opportunity to reexamine “national art museums” from various angles including institutions’ unique character, history, systems, scale, and funding.

National Means “For the People”
National art museums are of course founded and operated by nations, but what does “national” signify in this context? The National Gallery in London, which opened in 1824, celebrates its 200th anniversary this year. As one of 19 national museums across the country, it does not solely feature British art, and primarily focuses on European works. Established in the historical context of the Enlightenment, it was envisioned as a place where citizens could freely access education. Its Director, Gabriele Finaldi, stated: “The National Gallery and the building it occupies are owned by the nation, but here ‘national’ refers not to a geographic landmass but to all the people who are there,” underscoring the importance of each citizen’s sense of ownership towards the museum.

The National Gallery of Art (NGA) in Washington was proposed to then-President Franklin D. Roosevelt by the industrialist Andrew Mellon, who looked to the National Gallery in London as a model. Mellon donated all of the funds for its establishment, and it opened in 1941. Located in Washington, D.C., the U.S. capital and political hub, the NGA has evolved alongside historical events such as the Vietnam War, the assassination of John F. Kennedy, and the emergence of the counterculture. Its collection, which began with 546 items, has grown over the ensuing 82 years to more than 160,000 items.

The National Gallery Singapore, opened in 2015, is one of three art institutions in the Visual Arts Cluster of Singapore. It operates under two mid-term plans, the Heritage & Arts Strategy and the National Arts Council’s OUR SG ARTS Plan. The Gallery aims to contextualize the history of art in Singapore and Southeast Asia within the global art-historical narrative, with a national collection comprising 9,000 works and a policy mission clearly defined by Singapore’s status as a city-state.

France is a cultural powerhouse, and its national museum program dwarfs others by orders of magnitude. Of its 61 national museums, 43 fall under the purview of the Ministry of Culture. Whereas Japan distinguishes between bijutsukan (art museums) and hakubutsukan (other types of museums, although they may exhibit art), France classifies its institutions by era, region, and genre. For instance, the National Museum of Modern Art, specializing in modern and contemporary art from 1914 onwards, is housed in the Centre Pompidou. Of these national museums, 15 are designated as independent public institutions with a high degree of operational autonomy, serving to heighten their visibility, strengthen their identities, and enhance their ability to undertake ambitious projects.

The Nation as a Community
NGA Director Kaywin Feldman recalled that on her appointment five years ago, she was advised that “the nation becomes your community.” This marked a shift from her prior experience at regional art museums. She noted that while the term “national” can evoke patriotic sentiments, she consciously avoids an exclusionary interpretation of “national” and strives to serve everyone in the country. The NGA is exploring strategies to engage a wider audience across the U.S., especially through innovative digital and educational programs.

Meanwhile, the V&A East, slated to open in 2025, is a novel initiative described as “a storehouse open to everyone.” It will comprehensively manage 280,000 works, 1,000 archives, and 360,000 books. Director Gus Casely-Hayford stated that in establishing a museum in East London, an area with a high concentration of working-class residents and factories, they aspire to be a facility that resonates with the local community, avoiding the impression of an alien spaceship having suddenly landed. He also stressed the importance of having both a national and international presence.

The Future of National Art Museums
The funding sources and budget sizes of national museums vary widely, but National Gallery (London) Director Finaldi emphasizes that “the government has a responsibility towards each art museum.” The National Gallery operates on an annual budget of about 44 million pounds (approximately 8 billion yen), with 61% provided by the government and the remainder derived from revenue from special exhibitions and sponsorships. Prior to the pandemic, 70% of the visitors were tourists, and simply keeping the doors open generated revenue. While visitor numbers have not yet fully rebounded, he expressed a commitment to developing future visitors, and said there was in fact an emphasis on encouraging locals to frequently attend free exhibitions of the permanent collection.

The NGA in Washington, D.C. attracts four to five million visitors each year, and offers free admission to all exhibitions and programs. Government funding accounts for 75% of its budget, while the rest is sustained by earnings from its endowment. In Singapore, both national art museums obtain 70% of their funding from the Ministry of Culture’s budget, and admission is free for Singaporean citizens.

Some are of the opinion that national art museums should be free. However, since Japan’s national art museums became an independent administrative institution in 2001, they have been called on to generate their own income. Tanaka Masayuki, Director of the National Museum of Western Art (NMWA) in Tokyo, mentioned that the pandemic served as an opportunity to fundamentally rethink ways of organizing exhibitions and means of securing self-generated income. He described innovations aimed at presenting a new image of national art museums, such as utilizing the NMWA’s own and other Japanese collections exhibition for La Bretagne, source d’inspiration : regards de peintres français et japonais and planning the museum’s first contemporary art exhibition scheduled for March 2024, as well as the potential for private-sector donations. While many visitors to London and Washington, D.C. go to museums for the permanent collections, in Japan special exhibitions are the main reason for visits and a key source of revenue. The high dependence on blockbuster exhibitions sponsored by media companies has been a recurring issue since the pandemic, highlighting the clear need for thorough reforms to ensure more sustainable museum operations.

The importance of diversifying collections with regard to race, ethnicity, and gender, issues surrounding the repatriation of artworks and cultural properties from former colonies, and museums’ response to the climate crisis were addressed by various speakers as global-scale challenges. They emphasized that “national art museums” have significant roles to play not only at the national but also at the local, international, and transnational levels. Their multifaceted perspectives underscored the urgency of engaging in dialogue with policymakers, establishing clear visions, and implementing long-term strategies. The symposium served to renew participants’ awareness of these critical issues, and our hope is that the insights gained will translate into tangible actions.

Kataoka Mami　Director, National Center for Art Research