The historic Instituto Cabañas may be Guadalajara’s major cultural attraction and a UNESCO heritage site but its financial future is far from rosy.
Fewer visitors passed through the Cabañas’ doors (144,809) last year than in 2010 (159,992), and more than one-third did not pay an entrance fee – either turning up on Tuesdays, when charges are waived, or obtaining a courtesy pass.
Cabañas staff say the hike in entrance fees in July 2010 is probably the major reason for the visitor tally drop. Foreign tourists pay 75 pesos to tour the Cabañas and Mexican nationals 35 pesos.
The new fee rates translated into higher income but this has hardly helped the institute’s financial problems, according to director Cecilia Wolf.The Cabañas has maintained the same budget – just over 13 million pesos per annum – for the past five years. This barely covers the payroll, Wolf says, making adequate maintenance a headache and the planning of exhibits next to impossible.
Most of the itinerant exhibits that pass through the cultural center are financed from outside, such as the Jumex contemporary art show that ran during the Pan American Games last year.
Wolf cannot say with certainly how many exhibits the Cabañas will host this year. This week saw the opening of the first of the year: examples of folk art from the collection of Roberto Montenegro, which form part of the institute’s large archive.
The Cabañas now rents out many parts of its 23,000 square meters for concerts, corporate events or anyone interested but this extra income is not covering the shortfall.
Wolf says the Cabañas is Guadalajara’s “jewel in the crown” but argues that it must be supported by adequate funds.