IFT Café to organize art exhibitions until it goes private

The Institute for Tourism Studies (IFT) Café will organize art exhibitions until the café eventually tranistions to private ownership, IFT Public Relations Officer Chu Siu Heng told the Times yesterday.
Chu’s statement was made on the sidelines of the opening ceremony of the “Believe in Art” exhibition at the Café.
“Every two months before the privatization, there will be a different exhibition featuring different topics,” said Chu.
“We are still operating the café. It will take us probably more than six months to prepare for the work,” she pointed out, adding that “once the documents are ready, the news will be announced.”
Regarding the tender, Chu said that “it’s still under discussion.” According to her, nothing has been decided in relation to the ongoing tender procedure is still ongoing.
Earlier, the IFT told the Times that the café did not make a profit in its first two months, and added that the IFT did not receive an additional budget from the government for the café, which is part of the recently established Anim’Arte Nam Van facility.
“However, as a training and practicum venue, the IFT needs to station some training staff in the café to coach the students on their performance of the practicum. Therefore, the staffing costs are higher than at other food and beverage outlets.”
The exhibition, which opened yesterday, presents 17 art pieces from seven teachers and ten students from the School of Arts in Macao Polytechnic Institute (MPI).
The theme of the exhibition is “Believe in Art”. The word “believe” can be interpreted two ways, the first being that the art reflects the beliefs, concepts and ideologies of the artists. The exhibition can also be seen as a showcase of the institute’s achievements and its devotion to the development of local art.
The exhibition will be on display at the café until December 5. Julie Zhu