Gov. Ron DeSantis in June cut nearly $32 million in arts funding from the state budget, meaning that as of the new fiscal year that began July 1, many of Gainesville's arts and cultural institutions are feeling an impact.
The Samuel P. Harn Museum of Art — frequented by University of Florida students and community members alike — is one of the institutions the decision impacts.
“...Disappointment is this biggest emotion," said Lee Anne Chesterfield, director of the museum. "A little bit of concern, of course.”
The museum typically applies for $150,000 from the state, the maximum amount a museum of its size can request, Chesterfield said. While the amount actually received can vary, the museum received $102,800 last fiscal year. Now, they will not be receiving any of that money.
“Unfortunately, we will not be able to do as many programs as we might have been able to otherwise, unless we can raise that much more private funding,” she said.
In the meantime, the museum does have a reserve of money to use from endowment income that’s been previously held back.
“Our hope, and I think everyone’s hope, is that, through the generosity of private donors and endowment income, we'll still be able to do just as much as we wanted to do this year,” she said. “I have all the faith in the world. Gainesville is such a great place, and there are so many people that are really very supportive of the arts.”
The Cade Museum for Creativity and Invention typically receives $100,000 to $150,000 in funding from the state. Marketing director Julie DeCarmine said it would be “tricky” to comment on the subject.
“It’s a big loss and we’ll be forced to either make up for it through fundraising our scale back our programming,” DeCarmine said.
The Hippodrome Theatre is similarly reworking its budget. The organization also qualified for up to $150,000 each fiscal year, and losing the state allocation on short notice imposes uncertainties.
“We are artists, we are theater people, and we come together, and we find a way,” said Stephanie Lynge, the artistic director at the Hippodrome. “But the governor’s short-sighted view of the arts in general not taking into account the economic driver that we actually are in this state, will be damaging to communities on that front as well.”
While she and other Hippodrome employees plan to open their 52nd season on Aug. 30, the summer musical ended early in response to the news, Lynge said.
“We are looking at ways to produce high-quality, professional productions here on a smaller budget with fewer resources, and we are figuring out ways to make that work,” she said.
The theatre is a “historical anchor and attraction to downtown Gainesville”, and a “wonderful” outlet for UF students from the school of theater and dance, she said.
A spokesperson for the Curtis M. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts declined to comment on the cut.
Lauren Carlson, 20, has been in over 20 productions for musicals and plays, including four productions during her time as a UF student. The publicity director for Florida Players, a UF student-run theatre company, said theater and live performances provide an escape for many, including herself.
“I think this sets a dangerous precedent of defunding the already limited amount of government-allocated arts funding,” Carlson said. “I fear Florida, once known for the bustling arts scene within Tampa, Orlando and Miami, will be known instead for continued repression of politically left ideologies.”
She believes the fine arts are filled with insightful political commentary and said that this is “yet another way to continuously wage a culture war in a red state by punishing those with provoking commentary.”
Critics of the veto point to DeSantis’ press conference on June 27, in which he referenced his decision through the example of the Orlando Fringe Festival, home of the longest running theatre festival in the United States. He describes it as “sexual” and an “inappropriate use of taxpayer dollars.”
Carlson grew up with the festival being a “cornerstone” of her fine arts education, with her hometown high school previously performing in it.
“It is so hurtful to see the negative financial impacts and presumably the resulting censorship impact [on] a formative experience for me and many others,” she said. “I fear that this will limit the artistic expression of many as they cater to placate conservative lawmakers."
