Visitors are up, but Mona remains reliant on gambling funds

Mona remains heavily dependent on money from owner David Walsh's gambling interests despite recent cost-cutting and a jump in visitor numbers, newly filed accounts from the loss-making Tasmanian gallery's parent companies show.

Last week, Mr Walsh's privately owned Downward Spiral Enterprises (Tas) lodged eight years of accounts with the corporate regulator, giving a first glimpse of the finances of Mona’s ultimate holding company.

The accounts for the years from 2019 to 2025 reveal that more than $695 million in dividend income sustained the Mona gallery and other businesses in Mr Walsh's empire, including the Moorilla Estate winery, beer maker Moo Brew, and DarkLab, operator of the Dark Mofo festival, which launches next week.

Downward Spiral made a profit of $63.9 million in 2024–25, largely driven by a $114 million dividend from an undisclosed source, offsetting ongoing losses from Mona, where a new exhibition by Julian Charriere opens tomorrow, and a new library will open soon.

More visitors to Mona, fewer staff

Downward Spiral wholly owns Moorilla Estate Pty Ltd, which, in turn, owns the Mona gallery.

Last financial year, in separate accounts filed last week, Moorilla Estate reported an 8 per cent jump in Mona visitation to 354,000 admissions, although this remained 15 per cent lower than pre-COVID levels.

Moorilla Estate's revenue increased by $11 million to $52 million, and the bottom line improved by $15 million with losses shrinking from $63 million to $48 million.

The improvement was driven by a big drop in employee costs, although reported staff numbers doubled to 1,236.

In an email exchange this week, Mr Walsh told the ABC the latest headcount figure included casuals. He said the full-time staff employed at Mona was much lower.

"We reduced staff a lot," Mr Walsh said. "We reduced costs and had a bit more income, so obviously our financial performance has improved."

Mr Walsh said the roughly $100 million budget for building works at Mona had not been heavily impacted by the oil shock from the US and Israel's attack on Iran.

"We were basically finished before the war," he said. "[We're] just making local stuff now."

Mona 'isn't going to fall over': Walsh

Downward Spiral does not pay tax on its earnings, due to franking, and, as at June 30 last year, was carrying accumulated tax losses of more than $406 million.

Mr Walsh declined to identify the source of the rich dividend stream to Downward Spiral but said: "Mona isn't going to fall over."

Mr Walsh told the ABC he hoped eventually to "get the money back" through spin-off businesses like Art Processors, which developed The O digital guide used at Mona and sold to other cultural institutions around the world, and has patented digital queuing technology.

Mr Walsh said he doubted that he would sell Art Processors, also known as ArtPro, "but it will become profitable".

"Our key assets are our cataloguing system and the queuing patent. But ArtPro has a bunch of other viable assets," he said.

Mr Walsh described Mona as a "loss leader, with investment strategies".

"Mona's profitability will never be through instruments of Mona," he said.

"Art Processors has very good products informed by Mona, and we have an expectation that the library cataloguing system will be a worthy product.

"Mona is a showroom, but also a stimulant for insight. Mona will not be a profit centre, but it is an engine for profitability."

"I'd prefer Mona to be a discoverable enigma [like a gemstone on a beach] to a corporate asset.

"The ideal outcome for Mona is not as a maverick engagement, but an exemplar for other wealthier, more avaricious individuals to do something public-facing with a sliver of their cash hoard.

"I chose Mona over private islands, jets, and big boats. There are plenty of Australians [and others] who wouldn't have to choose."

Downward Spiral's accounts show the artworks held at Mona are valued at more than $83 million — an amount that has more than doubled over the past eight years.

On the gambling side of his business empire, Mr Walsh's company Data Processors — which advises clients on betting odds — last month succeeded in obtaining orders from the NSW Supreme Court requiring three former employees and two associates to repay a combined $3.75 million.

Data Processors alleged the former employees had installed code on its software systems that transmitted confidential data out of the company and allowed them and their associates to place their own profitable bets.

Under consent orders approved by the court, the employees agreed to refrain from any further use of the data and agreed to pay $750,000 each to settle the case.

Data Processors is owned by Newfield Holdings Australia, which is itself owned by Newfield Limited, a company based in British tax haven, the Isle of Man.

Exhibition a four-year collaboration

MONA showcases one major exhibition each year, with the latest opening tomorrow.

Hard Core by Swiss artist Julian Charriere gives insight into the time and money investment made into the museum's works.

Stones were shipped from Switzerland and volcanic rocks from Mexico.

A new wing was carved out from the rock to house a permanent Charriere work, called Breathe.

The artist worked with scientists and chemical engineers to release oxygen molecules trapped inside banded iron ore since the Great Oxidation Event 2.4 billion years ago.

Visitors enter the space one at a time to breathe in ancient air.

"It's not only an artwork, it's a scientific experiment, so reducing iron oxide into oxygen and giving you the possibility to actually take or inhale the beginning of life on earth,"

Charriere said.

"We went in all directions, we worked with people here, from Melbourne, in Germany, so it was a very complex collaborative project between a lot of different institutions and engineers."

Hard Core was a four-year collaboration between the museum and the artist.

"The collaboration is day to day for the team," Mona's director of curatorial affairs, Jarrod Rawlins, said.

"All our teams, including myself, have worked with Julian and his teams every day for a number of years."