In 2008, museums and art galleries carried out 4,640 full-time equivalents. In the past two years, the number of full-time equivalents carried out by museums has declined by 11 percent. The number of full-time equivalents at municipal museums declined, while the increase was sharpest at “other state museums” and art galleries. Six of every ten full-time equivalents at the institutions were carried out by women and 53 percent by persons with least three years of university education. Of the full-time equivalents that were added in the past year, three of every four were carried out by persons with at least three years of university education.
On average, two-thirds of the funding for museum and art gallery operations in 2008 was provided by grants. State government contributed 41 percent, the municipal governments 16 percent, and the county councils/regional administrations 9 percent. The total cost for 2008 amounted to slightly less than SEK 4 billion, of which personnel costs represented slightly more than half. The average cost per visit in 2008 was SEK 231. Sixty-five museums, of the total of 203, had free admission. The average admission price charged in 2008 was SEK 50 for adults. Municipal museums charged the lowest prices and central museums the highest.
The number of visits to museums and art galleries in 2008 was close to 18 million. Over the past two years, the number of visits has declined by 9 percent. The decline at central museums contributed primarily to the decline for the museums overall. The number of visits to “other state museums” increased most. The museums and the art galleries had an average of 310 visits per day in 2008. Skansen had the highest number of visitors, the Wasa Museum the second-highest, and Dunkers Kulturhus the third-highest.
The average number of visits over the past five years was 2,129 per year. Of all of the exhibitions held in 2008, 19 percent took place in an art gallery. Over 100,000 “public activities” took place in 2008 at museums and art galleries. Eight of ten were guided tours. Approximately 2,750,000 people participated in these activities.
In 2008, 1.4 million visits to museums and art galleries were from preschools/schools. Over the past three years, the number of visits from preschools/schools has declined by 19 percent. The decline was most apparent for municipal museums, where the number of visitors declined by almost 50 percent. During the same period, the number of visitors to art galleries more than doubled. At museums and art galleries that charged a fee in 2008, the average admission price charged for children was SEK 32. The average proportion of full-year equivalents focusing on children and youth was 6 percent. Of the public activities, 37 percent focused on preschools and schools. Over the past three years, the number of courses and study circles focusing on children and youth has almost doubled.