MONA FOMA cancelled: Tasmania’s Museum of Old and New Art cancels long-running summer festival after 16 years as owner David Walsh reveals why he ‘killed it’ – after Splendour in the Grass went under

Tasmania’s iconic Museum of Old and New Art’s summer event has joined a growing list of festival cancellations nationwide.

The museum’s owner and founder, David Walsh, announced on Friday that MONA FOMA had “unleashed its chaos” for the last time after 16 years.

It comes after winter music festival Splendor in the Grass, held in Byron Bay in northern New South Wales, recently canceled its 2024 event.

Walsh said MONA FOMA, which has attracted the likes of PJ Harvey, Peaches, David Byrne and Gotye, had been “magical” but the spell had worn off.

‘Maybe the end began with COVID. “Maybe it’s because the last festival was a sparsely attended artistic triumph,” Walsh said in a statement.

“But those aren’t the reasons I killed him.”

Walsh said the cost of expanding MONA into Hobart’s northern suburbs influenced his decision.

“I know we live for experience but, more and more, I seek permanence, a symbolic immortality,” he said.

‘At MONA, I’m building something big, I hope it’s something good, but it’s expensive.

‘I am addicted to construction and my addiction got out of control. Some things have to go before I’m too far away.

Dark Mofo, MONA’s popular winter arts, food and music festival, announced in September that it would be “taking a year off” due to rising costs.

It will run a greatly reduced program in 2024, but will still hold its winter festival and naked swim on the solstice.

According to the Australian Festivals Association, more than 25 music festivals have been canceled across the country since 2022.

Groovin the Moo organizers abandoned their event in February due to insufficient ticket sales.