Eli Broad, the philanthropist whose gift financed a new contemporary-art building this year at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, is planning to build another exhibition space for his vast collection, even as a third museum devoted to contemporary art here is facing a financial squeeze.
Mr. Broad, who early this year said he was not interested in building his own museum to display his collection, is now mulling the construction of new offices for his art foundation and “a first-class public art museum,” according to a letter sent last month to the City of Beverly Hills by a lawyer representing him.
The move comes as the Museum of Contemporary Art, a separate, privately financed institution in downtown Los Angeles, is facing a budget crisis that has led it to shut down part of its facilities for six months and to step up an effort to find new financing. In a statement Wednesday the museum said its board was “currently evaluating several scenarios that could lead to securing long-term viability for the museum and plans to reach a solution within the next 90 days.” (The New York Times)