Van Gogh Musuem May Soon Close Down Due to Lack of Funding

If Amsterdam is on your Europe bucket list, here’s some tea: the Van Gogh Museum might actually shut down. Yup, the home of Sunflowers, The Potato Eaters, and hundreds of Vincent van Gogh’s letters is warning it could close its doors if the Dutch government does not cough up more money.

This is not just clickbait scare talk. The building itself is breaking down after more than 50 years of use, and the museum says it cannot keep the collection safe without a full renovation.

Image credit: Van Gogh Museum Netherlands Website

So here’s the math. The Van Gogh Museum needs a full-on makeover called Masterplan 2028. It is a three-year project starting 2028 that covers €76 million for repairs and replacements, €23 million for sustainability upgrades, and €5 million for improvements. That is a total of €104 million.

The museum is already dipping into its own pocket, even agreeing to cover about €50 million in lost income during partial closures. But here is the kicker: it needs the state to increase its yearly support from €8.5 million to €11 million. Without that bump, the plan is dead and so is the museum.

Also read: DIY Trip to Paris, Amsterdam & Belgium: Tips, Itinerary & Budget for Filipinos

Image credit: Van Gogh Museum Netherlands Website

This part stings. Back in 1962, Van Gogh’s nephew gave the Dutch government his family’s entire collection which included more than 200 paintings, 500 drawings, and nearly a thousand letters. The deal was simple: “We’ll give you everything, you build and maintain a museum.”

Now the Van Gogh Museum says the government is not keeping that promise. Court dates are already set for 2026 if the money does not come through.

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Image credit: Van Gogh Museum Netherlands Website

The Van Gogh Museum is not just another tourist spot. Since opening in 1973, it has welcomed almost 57 million visitors and cemented Amsterdam as a global art capital. It even hit a record of 2.6 million guests in a single year. On top of that, the museum finances most of its own operations, generating 85 percent of its income through ticket sales and private partners. It is the world’s biggest Van Gogh collection in one place, with masterpieces that people fly across continents to see.

The Vincent van Gogh Foundation, which owns most of the art, is backing the museum’s fight and says the Dutch state must honour its promise.

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Filipinos love Europe, and the Van Gogh Museum is one of those dream stops we add to the itinerary along with Paris and Rome. But if this mess is not fixed, the chance to see Van Gogh’s world-famous works in person might slip away.

So if you are saving up for that Euro trip, make sure Amsterdam and the Van Gogh Museum are higher up on your list. This could be one of those “visit while you still can” situations.

Featured image credit: Canva Pro