Brazilian Museums Face Funding Crisis Under Bolsonaro's Cultural Policy

Major Brazilian museums are confronting severe financial constraints due to actions by the Bolsonaro government's Special Secretariat of Culture. The Pinacoteca of São Paulo, elected best museum in Brazil and Latin America in 2016, had its 2022 Annual Plan archived and will operate with only 6 million reais of its typical 18 million reais in incentivized resources. The Museu de Arte de São Paulo (MASP) received approval for a mere 8 million reais supplement against its usual 42 million reais annual fiscal incentive. Similar situations affect the Museu do Futebol, Museu da Língua Portuguesa, and Rio de Janeiro's Museu do Amanhã, which was authorized to raise 20 million reais against a projected need of 63 million reais. The crisis stems from a new Normative Instruction for the Rouanet Law (federal cultural incentive legislation) announced on February 8, which centralizes fundraising authorizations with the Special Secretary of Culture, imposes caps on artist fees, and introduces restrictive new provisions for Annual Plans. Secretary of Culture and Creative Economy of São Paulo, Sérgio Sá Leitão, has called the instruction "illegal" and "a sordid attack by Bolsonarism on Brazilian culture." The secretaries Mario Frias and André Porciuncula have engaged in public disputes with Leitão. Many institutions fear retaliation and avoid commenting. A constitutional challenge regarding the measures is pending in the Supreme Federal Court.