LOS ANGELES—The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, has gone into crisis mode, and director Jeremy Strick is seeking major support from donors, the Los Angeles Times reports. In an interview this week, Strick did not rule out the possibility of a merger with another institution or sharing the museum's nearly 6,000-piece collection to alleviate some of the pressure.

MOCA's federal tax returns show that the during Strick's nine years as director, the museum has dipped into its savings to help pay for routine operating costs. Earlier in this decade, MOCA had already spent a $20 million reserve of unrestricted funds, and by mid-2007, it had borrowed $7.5 million from its restricted accounts, which hold money designated by donors for specific uses. Although Strick would not disclose the most recent figures, he did acknowledge that the economic crisis has worsened the museum's financial state.

Whereas the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, which is partly controlled by the county, receives a large amount of government funding, MOCA relies on donors to pay about 80 percent of its expenses. In the interview, Strick said: "I think it is time for the city to step forward and offer the kind of financial support commensurate with the work being done."

Even as money has gotten tighter, the staff of the museum has grown from about 150 employees in the early part of the decade to 200 more recently. So far, there have not been any staff cuts. The museum did announce a six-month closure of its Geffen Contemporary exhibition space earlier this month as part of an effort to reduce operating costs by 10 percent.

Strick said before the economic crisis hit, MOCA had been planning for its first major endowment campaign since the mid-1990s. Now, he said, the museum must focus on "immediate issues" like fundraising. He added that the museum is in talks "with a number of potential partners about a variety of arrangements" but assured that a dissolution or takeover of MOCA by another institution is not an option.