Economic Crisis impacts on Spanish Culture

Sad but I guess inevitable to read the comments below by the Murcia Culture minister Pedro Alberto Cruz on the economic crisis and how heavily it has impacted upon on the cultural activities in Murcia and beyond.

Spain’s economic crisis has reduced its once flourishing culture scene to a shadow of its former self.  "In no other developed country has culture been hit by the crisis as heavily as in Spain,” says Pedro Alberto Cruz, culture and tourism minister of the southern Murcia region.

The region, with 1.5 million residents, has seen its culture budget slashed from 148 million euros (178 million dollars) in 2008 to only 42 million euros. “The situation is similar” in Spain’s other 16 semi-autonomous regions, Cruz reported recently.  Museums run by the Murcia regional government remain open, but for instance the Conservera contemporary arts center has halved its number of exhibitions.

La Conservera Arts Centre in Murcia

There are no more opera performances in the regional auditorium. Many actors and musicians performing at theaters get no payment other than a part of the ticket revenues. “Big Spanish museums will survive. But everyday culture — theatre and dance companies, writers — is on the verge of disappearing,” Cruz said.

Not only are Spaniards spending less on culture in the country where a quarter of the workforce is unemployed. The central and regional governments have also axed culture budgets, prompting artists to stage unusual street rallies.  “Culture is not a luxury, it is a public good. Cuts in culture (budgets) produce citizens who are unable to think,” actor Juan Diego Botto said.

Before the economic crisis, the culture sector employed more than 600,000 people and contributed 4 per cent of Spain’s gross domestic product. Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy’s conservative government eliminated the culture ministry as an independent entity and integrated it into the education ministry as part of its attempts to cut the 8.9-per-cent budget deficit.

The government also cut spending on culture by 15 per cent this year. From September onwards, value added tax on cinema, theatre or concert tickets will go up from 8 to 21 per cent — one of the highest levels in Europe. The measure will reduce audiences by 43 million people and kill 4,300 jobs, an association of culture entrepreneurs warned.

Spain’s once showcase movie industry has already suffered heavily from subsidy cuts and from internet piracy. Cinema audiences dropped from 144 million people in 2004 to 98 million in 2011. The country that gave birth to the likes of actress Penelope Cruz or director Pedro Almodovar sees its production figures tumbling.

Bookshops and art galleries are also languishing. “My paintings used to sell for thousands of euros, but now my gallery is only offering me 800 euros for them,” says a Madrid painter with a long career.  The crisis has even hit giants such as Madrid’s Prado art museum, home to masterpieces by Francisco de Goya or Diego Velazquez. Such top museums, however, can rely on income from entrance fees, souvenir and catalogue sales. The Prado has amplified its opening hours and plans to seek more sponsors.

Smaller venues and individual artists are also increasingly relying on private money. Murcia, for instance, has adopted the model known as "crowd-funding", initially developed by artists seeking small contributions on the internet. Companies can get the status of official sponsors by contributing at least 500 euros to cultural institutions or projects, Cruz explained. More than 100 companies have already joined in.

The Spanish culture scene is surviving through “efforts and imagination,” Cruz said. Some theatres, for instance, survive by renting out rehearsal rooms or by giving acting classes. Bookshops open cafeterias. Some cultural venues have taken bank loans.

The Spanish culture scene has depended too much on state subsidies, leaving it excessively vulnerable to the economic crisis, Cruz argues. “We want more sponsoring agreements and less of a subsidized culture,” said Jose Ignacio Wert, the minister responsible for culture, education and sports