The dean of the Faculty of Fine Arts, Laura Silvestre, attended the rally held this Friday at the Institut Valencià d’Art Modern (IVAM) to demand the reduction of Cultural VAT, thus showing her express alignment with the official statement issued by the Conference of Deans of Fine Arts Faculties of Spain.
It is important to emphasize that the Conference stresses that the faculties, as institutions responsible for the training of future artists and cultural professionals, cannot remain on the sidelines of an unsustainable situation and that it is necessary to demand a “competitive” fiscal framework that guarantees the survival of a key sector for the country’s identity and heritage.
Dean Laura Silvestre backed the national mobilization promoted by the Consortium of Contemporary Art Galleries on February 20, in defense of a reduced VAT that would put the Spanish art sector on a par with other European countries. Since the current application of 21% is a comparative disadvantage compared to countries like Portugal (6%), France (5.5%) or Italy (5%), and compromises both the viability of the galleries and the professional future of graduates in Fine Arts.
The mobilization took place simultaneously at the Centro Andaluz de Arte Contemporáneo (Seville), the Museu d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona and the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía (Madrid), with sit-ins and rallies at their main entrances.
