Tasmania's Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) has accumulated staggering losses of $408 million since opening its doors in 2011, yet founder David Walsh maintains he is "completely happy with the finances" of his ambitious cultural venture. The controversial art museum, located in Hobart, lost $63 million in the 2023-24 financial year alone, representing an increase from the $60 million loss recorded the previous year, according to previously unreported corporate filings.
"MONA is financially where I want it to be," Walsh told ABC News via email. "MONA will never make money [in and of itself], and it was never intended to. If I wanted to make money, I would have built it in Sydney, or Istanbul, or somewhere. I'm fine spending – I'm not the most committed capitalist – and I like building stuff." The 64-year-old entrepreneur, who made his fortune through professional gambling as part of a global syndicate that bets $10 billion annually, continues to invest heavily in the museum's expansion despite the mounting losses.
Walsh is currently completing a $100 million extension featuring a new gallery wing set to open in December and a library scheduled to open next year. Signs at the construction site playfully announce: "Yep, David's building something new. At this point, we've given up trying to stop him." The new wing and library will cost more than the original museum, according to Walsh, who estimates MONA costs him approximately $25 million per year in the long term.
Despite the significant financial losses, Walsh points to MONA's broader economic impact on Tasmania. He cited an unreleased 2018 Deloitte Access Economics report showing the gallery generates $135 million annually in direct and indirect economic activity across Tasmania, equivalent to 1,285 jobs statewide, and $165 million nationally. "Whether that's worthwhile, I really don't know," Walsh admitted. "Hopefully, MONA will have sufficient income."
The museum's parent company, Moorilla Estate, which operates MONA alongside a brewery, winery, and various festivals, has seen fluctuating revenues over recent years. Corporate filings show revenue peaked at $44.9 million in 2023 before dropping to $41.4 million in 2024, while employee numbers have remained relatively stable around 500 people. However, Walsh trimmed costs by approximately $9 million last year by canceling the summer MONA FOMA festival in Launceston and securing additional state government support worth $7 million annually for the Dark Mofo winter festival.
Walsh outlined several potential strategies to make MONA profitable, though he emphasized he has no intention of implementing them. These include raising ticket prices for the 300,000 annual interstate and international visitors from $39 to $80, charging Tasmanians a $30 entry fee instead of the current free admission, reducing music offerings, and scaling back Dark Mofo. "We could do simple stuff, like open on days when there are cruise ships and market to them. I'm not a fan of cruise ships in Hobart [at least the all-inclusive type], so I don't do that at the moment," he explained. "I won't do any of this stuff, but others will in my absence, if necessary."
The museum's future leadership plans center around Walsh's wife, artist Kirsha Kaechele, who has gained international attention for her controversial Ladies Lounge exhibition. "In the event that I die today and Kirsha wanted to change the revenue base, it's pretty easy to do," Walsh said, expressing confidence that she would continue supporting the gallery after his eventual death. Kaechele, who was recently featured in an Australian Story program, has become a prominent figure in the art world through her boundary-pushing installations and exhibitions.
Walsh believes MONA's financial salvation may lie with its technology subsidiary, Art Processors, which he describes as his "great white hope." The company developed "The O" digital guide used at MONA since 2011 and recently launched Pladia, a visitor wayfinding platform now being marketed to other cultural institutions. Art Processors has secured clients including Sydney's Museum of Contemporary Art, various international galleries, and the upcoming $150 million Cadbury Visitor Experience center in Hobart, which projects 550,000 annual visitors.
"When implemented, [the virtual queuing system] may well obviate the need for queues anywhere," Walsh said of Art Processors' patented technology. "With a bit of luck, someone will acquire it and fund the next round of MONA expansion [and this one, because I have some debt]." However, the technology company has faced challenges, losing between $1-1.5 million monthly until a restructuring in July that included shutting down its US operations amid arts funding volatility.
MONA's visitor numbers tell a story of both success and recent challenges. The museum ranked as Tasmania's third-most popular tourist attraction in 2024-25 with 330,000 visitors, trailing only Hobart's Salamanca Markets and Mount Wellington. However, this represents a decline from the peak of 405,000 visitors in 2018-19, before the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted tourism patterns. Independent economist Saul Eslake suggests the "MONA effect" may have peaked before COVID, noting that the museum has strategically scaled back some festivals and operations.
"It's still important. I think MONA has changed the image or face that Tasmania has presented to the world," Eslake observed. "Prior to MONA we [Tasmania] were in danger of being 'Jetstar-ised'. The kind of people who go to MONA don't want to fly Jetstar." He credited MONA with attracting a different category of tourists to Tasmania and enabling investment in luxury hotels like Hobart's first Hilton and Crowne Plaza properties.
Looking ahead, Walsh remains optimistic about potential catalysts for increased visitation, including the proposed AFL stadium at Macquarie Point and the Cadbury Chocolate Experience. "I do know that when there's a football game in Hobart, we get a huge influx of visitors," he said, despite expressing uncertainty about the stadium proposal. Walsh also continues to contemplate a major hotel development on the MONA site, after shelving a $400 million, 176-bed project in 2021.
Walsh's long-term vision for MONA extends beyond his own lifetime, with hopes of establishing sustainable income streams and endowments. "I hope to live long enough to establish, on MONA's behalf, an endowment, or some income streams that support it," he explained. "I don't see MONA as a charity. I hope it'll be an ideas incubator, that'll make money. I want it to be profitable because I want other, richer, more avaricious people than me to engage in similar social experiments." Despite the massive financial losses, Walsh's commitment remains unwavering: "I'm about to open an extension that costs more than the original museum. I wouldn't be doing that if I wasn't a true believer."
