San Francisco Museum of Modern Art

What it reported doing in 2024

See schedule ocollections and purchase of artone of the most important functions of a museum is to develop, care for, and make accessible to the public an outstanding collection of works of art, thereby creating and offering an artistic legacy to the community, nation, and the world. Since 1935, sfmoma has been a pioneer among modern and contemporary art museums in collecting and public programming in the fields of photography, architecture and design, installation, and new media, even as it has assembled premier holdings in the more traditional media of drawing, painting, and sculpture. Sfmoma's art collection is regional, national, and international in scope, and begins in the twentieth century, with the exception of photography, which encompasses the entire history of that medium (1839 to the present). The museum has more than 52,000 works of art in its collection, reflecting the collecting strategies of the museum's curatorial departments and the research library.department of painting and sculpturethe department of painting and sculpture consistently engages with the art and artists of our time, continuing efforts that extend back to our opening in 1935. In addition to organizing major retrospectives and thematic exhibitions, the department is committed to supporting artists at the start of their careers, as founding director grace mccann morley did when she presented key early solo museum exhibitions of claire falkenstein, adaline kent, roberto matta, and mark rothko. Numbering more than eight thousand works, our holdings include paintings, sculptures, and works on paper, yet often expand beyond these categories to follow artists and their interests.the painting and sculpture collection features art created between 1900 and the present with concentrations highlighting the full arcs of artists' work. Wide-ranging in scope, areas of focus include fauvism, modernism in the united states and mexico, and transatlantic surrealism. Additional strengths include postwar american art with deep holdings in minimalism and pop art; postwar german art; and contemporary art both local and global. As the first museum on the west coast dedicated to modern and contemporary art, the painting and sculpture department remains committed to supporting and exhibiting art and artists from California and the bay area. These efforts include the seca art award, which distinguishes bay area artists whose work has not received substantial recognition, as well as retrospectives of local artists, including ruth asawa, bruce conner, jay defeo, and david park.department of photographysfmoma was among the first american art museums to recognize photography as an art form. The museum has been dedicated to the acquisition, research, presentation, and interpretation of photographs for more than ninety years, making sfmoma's holdings one of the oldest collections of photography among art museums nationwide. The photography collection is also the museum's largest collection. The museum's collection is particularly well-regarded for its photography of California and the west, the european avant-garde, and american modernism. Other areas of strength include japanese photography, vernacular photography, landscape photography, and a growing contemporary collection. The sfmoma pritzker center for photography is the largest permanent space devoted to photography in a modern and contemporary art museum.department of architecture and designthroughout its history sfmoma has been an active forum for examining formal and conceptual issues in the fields of design. The museum presented architecture and design exhibitions regularly before an official curatorial department was founded in 1983. Five years later, the museum began collecting works of modern and contemporary design; to date, there are over 7,500 works of architecture and design. As the first a+d collection on the west coast, sfmoma is now recognized as one of the foremost museums invested in collecting, conservi

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 91.2%; rating input score 91
• Program expense ratio: 80.8%; rating input score 81
• Fundraising efficiency: $5.62 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 25th percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 6 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 100
  • Compensation committee: Pass
  • Independent consultant: Pass
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
  • Written employment contract: Pass
  • Compensation survey or study: Pass
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
• Grant itemization coverage: Scored; rating input score 0
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
  • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 6%; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 8.78; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.05; rating input score 89; 89th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 4.1%; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 5.4% per year; rating input score 100; 44th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: -3.1% per year; rating input score 0; 2nd percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 5.2% per year; rating input score 100; 38th percentile among comparable filings