The proposal to establish a major authority by merging the Modern Museum with the State Art Council and Arkdes, which is the state's center for architecture and design, has been criticized and is being pushed through despite objections from many agencies in the art world of Sweden.
Among other things, there have been fears that the areas of architecture and design would receive less space and funding in an organization dominated by the Modern Museum.
"The proposed authority would become an imposed overarching bureaucracy without benefits for either architecture, design, or free art," wrote, among others, the Art Academy in its response.
But now it's happening. The government made the decision at its Wednesday meeting, and the proposal is expected to take effect on January 1, 2026.
The government claims that the three authorities are too small on their own, and that the merger will release resources as the different activities can share costs for IT, HR, and economy.
"The government wants a more efficient state, including by reducing the number of authorities. When authorities work within similar fields, we can strengthen operations by gathering both tasks and expertise," says Minister for Civil Affairs Erik Slottner (Christian Democrats) in a press release.
