LETTER:
I want to clarify some details of The witness May 26 front-page article titled “The City’s Unprofitable Entities.”
The author of this article, Sakhiseni Nxumalo, cites a 2020/21 budget report from Msunduzi Municipality stating that the “financially crippled” municipality has allocated R2.3 million to the Tatham Art Gallery, as one of many “heavily subsidized” entities.
READ HERE | Msunduzi does not receive feedback from subsidized entities
The points I wish to clarify are as follows.
1. The Tatham Art Gallery is not a commercial entity. As a museum, the Tatham Art Gallery offers a service to the community. The Tatham Art Gallery is considered an educational unit and is not expected to generate revenue. In the new municipal structure, the Tatham Art Gallery is placed in the Community Services business unit.
2. The Tatham Art Gallery Board of Trustees and the Friends of the Tatham Art Gallery (Fotag) fund new acquisitions for the Tatham Art Gallery Art Collection. The municipality stopped funding such expenditures decades ago.
3. The Municipality of Msunduzi pays only the salaries of Tatham Art Gallery staff and security personnel, as well as building maintenance and basic running costs.
READ ALSO | Spiritual ceramics by award-winning Durban artist Luthuli on display at Tatham
I believe the Tatham Art Gallery is one of the best art museums in South Africa. The KZN Inner Matrix Art Exhibition is currently on display in the Main Gallery, reflecting the diversity of creative output at the secondary school level in the region.
In the Shreiner Gallery is a superb exhibition of ceramics by Sbonelo entitled “Ihubo Lengabadi/ Song of the Soil”.
Do yourself a favor and come in and feast your eyes.
Oh, and by the way, admission is free.
Doctor Louise Hall
Chairman of the Board of the Tatham Art Gallery
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