The University of Alicante Museum, known as the MUA, marks its twenty-fifth year. It opened in 1999 and from the start was housed in a handsome building designed by Alfredo Payá Benedito. The initial plan was for it to be a museum of ethnographic musical instruments, but the university ultimately chose to dedicate it to contemporary arts. In its early years it presented a cutting edge program focused on current creation and earned praise from Spanish critics. Today, it functions more as a flexible, multipurpose space than a museum in the strict sense.
The rectoral elections are approaching, and a sociologist of culture and the arts wrote for INFORMACIÓN to discuss the MUA’s future. The aim was to urge both candidates, Amparo Navarro and Enrique Herrero, to consider deep conceptual and practical changes should one of them win and take office.
In a concise balance, the university has maintained, with sensitivity, even through the crises of 2008, a budget and a vice-rectorate dedicated to cultural activities, sometimes amid debate with parts of the university that preferred the money be spent solely on research. Over the years the vicerrectors sustained a dynamic program, assembled a team of highly qualified professionals, organized numerous exhibitions on the arts, heritage, and science, and built a permanent collection with important works by artists such as Eusebio Sempere; architectural photographs by Julius Schulman; paper works by José Gutiérrez Solana, Joan Miró, Pablo Picasso, Amadeo Gabino, Eduardo Chillida, Manuel Mompó, Francisco Farreras, Salvador Victoria, and Agustín Ibarrola; the collection donated by Arcadio Blasco; and the collection donated by Daniel Escolano.
On the museum site it is stated that created in 1999, the MUA is conceived as an effective instrument to provide a comprehensive education to students, through initiatives that boost sensitivity and foster a more reflective understanding of our condition, society, and history. The principal mission is to become a space of cultural dynamization, learning, encounter, and confrontation that brings the innovation and experimentation of the university realm and contemporary art to society at large. In this sense, the museum acts as a socializer of knowledge and a driver of the community’s cultural life.
No one seems to oppose this mission, beyond the note that the word arts appears in a later line rather than at the very start, and that faculty and staff should also be included along with students and the broader society. Along with education, the playful and experiential aspects that art provides should also be acknowledged, so the proposed update aims to deepen these goals and begin a new phase built on experience but with broad transformations to ensure the institution meets the modern understanding of a museum rather than a multipurpose social venue.
Metaphorically, the museum should reach adulthood and become an autonomous entity with clear profiles devoted to the complete development of Alicante’s citizens. It would concentrate on art, science, and heritage exhibitions, but also serve as a hub for diffusion, innovation, and research, and for the preservation and expansion of the public artistic and scientific patrimony. It would function as a focal point for learning and dialogue, extending its reach beyond campus to the wider community.
To pursue this direction, a concrete set of measures is proposed to guide policy and debate within the university. First, urgent work should be undertaken in the Cub Hall at the MUA to restore the exhibition walls, address lower-wall damage, and equip the space to function as a true exhibition venue with space fragmentation, improved lighting, and appropriate height. It is essential to address the water patina surrounding the building, since it is part of the architect’s design and contributes to the building’s unique beauty, seeking modern, cost-effective maintenance strategies.
It would also be prudent to relocate the museum from its campus base to a distinctive city building through talks with the Ayuntamiento, Diputación, or the Generalitat. Alicante already hosts two strong university sites with capable staff, which would enhance attendance and the MUA’s social reach, thereby increasing the impact of cultural investments. This move would amplify the public reach and the social return of the museum’s activities.
Additionally, the appointment of a specialized museum director with knowledge of the arts, paired with a defined program and budget, would be essential. The exhibition program should clearly outline three priority artistic areas: support for contemporary artists from Alicante, Valencia, and Spain; support for young artists; and the development of works linked to new technologies. Where possible, dedicated spaces should be allocated for these areas. Exhibitions focusing on science and heritage should have their own distinct spaces. It would be timely to launch an open call for exhibition proposals from professional curators in the province and from university faculty capable of developing artistic, scientific, or heritage showcases, with fair remuneration for those selected.
Furthermore, the MUA should promote donations of historical and artistic works by establishing professional selection criteria and reserving a special area for storage and maintenance, perhaps near the Park Scientific. A collaboration agreement with the Generalitat Valenciana for the restoration of works held by the MUA would be useful. The MUA should become the center coordinating local exhibitions across all university sites and cultural houses across the province. A dedicated director and art technicians would support this direction. Finally, a committee of university experts, including architects, anthropologists, historians, art historians, sociologists, and communications specialists, would set criteria for the placement of artworks on campus so that spaces, landscapes, and works engage in a meaningful dialogue. The author believes this is a prudent course for the MUA’s future in the rector elections and hopes to stimulate candidates to include a future plan for the MUA in their platforms. The Sedes Universitarias and the MUA stand as powerful symbols that define the university’s identity, projecting its ambition to be a public, innovative society that helps shape the future.