Designhuis to Shut its Doors (or not?)

A museum takes years to get established, so when the Designhuis announced this week that it will close at the end of the month, people were shocked. “Their decision is very hard to understand,” Li Edelkoort says about the Eindhoven city’s decision to stop funding.

By Gabrielle Kennedy / 24-06-2009

The board of the Designhuis and its creative director have been saying all week that the design museum in Eindhoven will close its doors on June 30. The coffers are empty and there are no remaining funds to finance the exhibitions scheduled for the second half of this year.

When the museum opened eighteen months ago, the city of Eindhoven promised to subsidize the project. The amount agreed to was one million euros per year for three years, which would have given the board time to look for private funding.

“But they quit helping us and there is no more money," says Edelkoort. “The plan was to build up this endeavour and get people interested. Once we had a brand and had established an international reputation, it would have been easier and we would have had more time to look for further finance.”

The board is dismayed and frustrated. It’s a chicken and egg scenario given that a museum needs to be established before private entities will offer sponsorship.

“We are very upset,” says Edelkoort. “We expected a three year trial and it has only been one and a half years during which time we have done very well thank you very much.”

Since opening, 80 000 people have visited the Designhuis. “Which is amazing when you consider that this is a new project in a secondary city,” says Edelkoort. “Their decision is very hard to understand.”

Curiously, when design.nl contacted the Eindhoven city government today, they denied that the Designhuis will close and disagreed with the amount of financial assistance that they had reportedly promised.

“It was premature for the board and Edelkoort to announce the museum closure,” says Eindhoven City director, Ger Peeters. “That is just the position they are taking because they did not get the money they wanted.

“The amount they asked for was not possible at this time, but when we heard that the answer would be to close, we said we would try to help them get funds from elsewhere. I think they may need to go into sleep-mode for the summer months, but that does not mean the museum will have to close. That is not what we want at all.”

Regardless, Edelkoort says that she is not giving up on the idea of establishing a successful Dutch design museum. “It think it would be interesting to speak to different cities about a new plan,” she says. “I believe the Netherlands needs a podium for just design, and except for Platform 21 in Amsterdam, we really do not have one.

“I think design needs a place of its own and I am waiting for that day. Maybe it will come and maybe it will not.”