When the Hong Kong government recently pulled the plug on Para/Site by not renewing its "Springboard" matching grant, many believed the only way the independent art space in Sheung Wan could sustain itself would be to turn to private funding. Similarly, Woofer Ten, an alternative art group based in Shanghai Street that has lost its grant from the Hong Kong Arts Development Council, may also need to look for private money if it wants to continue.
Meanwhile, Chief Secretary Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor has indicated the government will not commit more money to the West Kowloon Cultural District other than its initial HK$21.6 billion investment. So, after its first phase (to be completed by 2018), the project is expected to seek private funding.
While M+ is expected to be comparable to London's Tate Modern or New York's Museum of Modern Art, Hong Kong lacks the tradition of cultural patronage.
The government seems to be encouraging the arts to turn to private sources for funding, despite the fact our Treasury is brimming with surpluses. But is that a more desirable alternative for supporting Hong Kong arts?
Let's take M+ as an example. It is agreed that a city like ours needs a world-class museum for educational and cultural development reasons. What's more, since our manufacturing industry has moved north over recent decades, Hong Kong needs new industries that can help drive the local economy. The creative sector can do just that.
Art boosts businesses such as art transportation, storage, insurance and educational facilities as well as, potentially, jobs. And those jobs have a positive impact on society, economically and culturally. Shouldn't the government play a part in nurturing this young and growing industry?
While the world-class museum (for that is what it aspires to be) is part of the first phase of the West Kowloon development, it will need funding beyond 2018. Of the HK$21.6 billion, HK$5 billion goes to M+ (plus HK$1 billion for acquisitions). Some critics say that is a big sum but consider that Lars Nittve, executive director of M+, pulled off a coup by securing a major donation of 1,500 pieces of Chinese contemporary art from Swiss collector Uli Sigg. That alone is estimated to be worth around HK$1.7 billion.