Professional gambler turned art benefactor David Walsh has admitted that his Hobart Museum Of Old & New Art, the site of an annual music festival, loses “millions” of dollars each year.
In an interview with ABC TV’s 7.30 which will air tonight, Walsh said that the world famous museum is being “slaughtered” financially. Violent Femmes bassist Brian Ritchie curates the MONA FOMA/MOFO and DARK MOFO festivals, which this year booked Sunn O))), The Bronx and Total Control amongst others.
“When I built the place, I wasn’t really concerned about whether it would be around in ten years,” Walsh told 7.30. “I was just doing it on a whim. But I get so much feedback and the local community takes ownership of it to the extent that I’ve started to think I do want to perpetuate it.”
Walsh also opens up on his career in gambling and said he built MONA to absolve himself of the guilt from the “immoral” industry.
“I made my money gambling, it’s a zero sum game,” he said. Like the stock markets, when someone wins, someone loses. If you have a bet on the Melbourne Cup, you lose a few bucks, you’re going to lose slightly more than the standard odds because I’m in the market.”
He also takes aim at poker machines in venues.
“Poker machines, push the button and pull the arm. It sets up feedback loops, feedback loops are notoriously insidious. I think poker machines are an abomination for the most part and I think one of the most insidious things I have ever seen is this connecting child minding centres to clubs, which then makes it hard to separate out the immorality with the community service.”
The full interview will aim on ABC TV tonight at 7.30pm.
