(Paris) A major blow for the Centre Pompidou: its project for a branch in the United States has been cancelled, throwing its ambition to set foot in North America into doubt, while it is preparing to close for five years in France.
This project, which the major Parisian museum of modern art was due to open in 2027 in Jersey City, a suburb of New York, is “suspended until further notice”, the establishment confirmed to AFP on Tuesday, following information from the local American press picked up by the website specializing in art ARTnews.
The New Jersey state authorities considered the cost too high, according to an official letter to the president of the Centre Pompidou, Laurent Le Bon, revealed by the local American press and of which AFP has a copy.
“While we are honored to have Jersey City selected as the first North American site to host a Centre Pompidou branch, we have decided to suspend this project until further notice,” said an official from the New Jersey Redevelopment Agency. He noted a significant increase in costs for public finances, particularly since the COVID-19 crisis.
Funding cancelled
In a separate letter, the Democratic-run state of New Jersey also warned of the cancellation of $18 million in funding and asked the city of Jersey City to repay $6 million already allocated by March 1.er august.
It is a major blow for the Parisian institution, one of the most important museums of modern and contemporary art in the world, which must close for at least five years in the summer of 2025 for major asbestos removal and renovation work, estimated at 262 million euros ($386 million), financed by the state. It is also seeking additional equity financing of 186 million euros ($274 million) for its cultural project when it reopens.
This cultural project, recently entrusted to a Franco-Japanese duo and a Mexican architect, consists of a redevelopment of the spaces of the museum built almost half a century ago and recognizable by its colorful exterior tubular structure, designed by the Italian Renzo Piano and the Briton Richard Rogers.
Laurent Le Bon explained that he intended to raise these funds with the help of “patronage”, “the circulation of works” and “the possible association of another country”.
In a severe report published in April, the Court of Auditors criticized its “economic model as difficult to sustain.”
Asked by AFP, the Pompidou Center did not provide any details on the financial consequences of the American decision, indicating only that “discussions with the mayor of Jersey City will continue in order to decide together on the next steps for the project.”
Political calculations
The abandonment of the project by the State of New Jersey is “really regrettable,” reacted a spokeswoman for the city of Jersey City, which promises to continue discussions with its partners “to see if there is a possible solution.” The city attributes the state’s decision to political calculations: it would be a question of making Mayor Steve Fulop pay for withdrawing his support for the candidacy of the governor’s wife, Tammy Murphy, for a seat in the United States Senate.
The withdrawal also comes amid criticism from local Republican elected officials, who had estimated the bill for taxpayers at $200 million in the long term.
The New York partnership was to be the fifth major and the first on the American continent for the Pompidou Center, which has already lent its name to arts centers in Malaga, Shanghai and Brussels.
Located on the west bank of the Hudson River, across from Manhattan, Jersey City is a former industrial city that has been undergoing transformation – and gentrification – since the 1980s.
New York already has two major contemporary art museums, MoMA and the Whitney, complemented by the contemporary art offerings of the Metropolitan Museum and the Guggenheim.
In recent years, Jersey City has attracted a growing number of artists, as New York rents have skyrocketed.
Asked by AFP, the Ministry of Culture did not immediately react.