29 July 2024
Marcus Robbins
By email:
[FYI request #27584 email] Tēnā koe Marcus
Official information request regarding the Adam Art Gallery in 2023
We refer to your request for information under the Official Information Act 1982 (the
Act) dated 12 July 2024:
“The following information request/s covers the 2023 year and the Adam Art
Gallery.
The Adam Art Gallery appears to be a wholly run subsidiary of VUW, if this is not
the case please share information about the structure of the Gallery if known.
1. What was the 2023 budget for the Adam Art Gallery
2. How much funding did the University contribute to the Adam Art Gallery in
2023?
3. How much space did the Adam Art Gallery have in 2023
3.1 If the Gallery has non-campus spaces please indicate what these spaces are.
3.2 What were the costs for the Gallery to use these spaces/buildings in 2023?
3.3 What is the current earthquake rating for the Gallery, the main exhibition
space/s only.
4. How many current students had exhibitions in the Gallery in 2023?
4.1 How many current VUW staff had exhibitions in the Gallery in 2023?
5. How many VUW students visited the Gallery in 2023?
5.1 How many VUW staff visited the Gallery in 2023?
5.2 Are statistics kept on visitor numbers annually? If they are kept what are those
numbers for 2023 and how were they recorded?”
Te Pātaka Toi – the Adam Art Gallery (the Gallery) is a purpose-built public art gallery
and a subsidiary of Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington (the University).
Please see below for responses to each of your questions. The figures are for the year
2023.
1.
The annual budget for the Gallery, including staffing costs and occupancy, was
$1,182,826. Its operating budget was $191,638, of which $145,961 was spent. The
Gallery came in under budget at $1,100,995.
2.
The University provided the Gallery with $967,202, which accounted for 88% of its
annual budget.
3.
The Gallery's total exhibition space is 350 square meters
3.1 All exhibition spaces are located on campus.
3.2 The Gallery’s occupancy cost in 2023 was $460,400, which included expenses for
storage and records management, maintenance work, and cleaning.
3.3 The University has not recently completed a Detailed Seismic Assessment on the
gallery building, but an Initial Evaluation Procedure (IEP) completed in 2011
indicated a New Building Standard (NBS) rating of 100% at the time.
4.
No student exhibitions were held at the Gallery.
4.1 Two staff exhibitions were held at the Gallery.
5.
The Gallery hosted 24 organised student group visits from across the University,
with class sizes ranging from 6 to 25 students per visit. The total number of
students in these group visits was 384. The Gallery does not hold a record of the
number of individual student visits.
5.1 The Gallery does not hold a record of the number of individual staff visitors.
5.2 The Gallery welcomed a total of 5,594 visitors (including staff visitors). The count
was recorded manually by front desk attendants using a clicker counter.
As explained above, we are unable to provide information in response to your questions 5
and 5.1 in relation to individual visits as we do not record this information. Therefore,
these aspects of your request are refused under section 18(e) of the Act on the basis that
the information requested does not exist.
You can find more information, including details about exhibitions, on the Gallery’s
official website.
You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman of the
decisions made regarding this request. Information about how to make a complaint is
available at
www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or freephone 0800 802 602.
If you wish to discuss this decision with us, please feel free to contact me at
[VUW request email].
Ngā mihi nui,
Legal Services
Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington
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