NewsPrizes
Artist Gary Hume says National Portrait Gallery should 'bite the bullet' and cut ties with oil giant BP
Fuel company's decision to withdraw from the BP Portrait Award judging panel was a missed opportunity to end sponsorship relationship, artist believes
CommentSponsorship
Museum top brass are losing the oil money plot
Decision by London's British Museum and Science Museum to continue accepting sponsorship from fossil fuel companies risks alienating the public they serve
NewsFunding
Fossil-fuel giant Shell ends its support of London's Southbank Centre
Decision comes amidst pressure from activist groups for UK museums to end their oil sponsorship deals
NewsSponsorship
Climate activists take over British Museum in all-night protest against BP sponsorship
Organisers of the three-day action, the group BP or not BP?, called it the "largest protest in the history of the museum"
AnalysisArt market
How serious are the dangers of market sponsorship of museum exhibitions?
Involvement from galleries and auction houses is on the rise as public institutions face dwindling government funds and increased scrutiny over toxic philanthropy
NewsBritish Museum
Climate activists urge British Museum to reject BP funding, as Arctic exhibition announced
Planned show seeks to raise awareness of climate change, but London museum dogged by controversy over partnership with oil and gas giant
NewsSponsorship
Protestors disrupt VIP preview of British Museum's Troy exhibition
Members of the climate activist group BP or not BP? blocked entry to the museum's show dressed as statues based on Greek mythology
NewsMuseums
National Galleries of Scotland to no longer host BP Portrait Award
Museums officials say that the association with the oil company is at odds with a "responsibility to do all we can to address the climate emergency"
NewsSponsorship
After backlash over homophobic sponsor, former BP chief steps in to fund Turner Prize
John Browne is among four new supporters of the award that launches in Margate
NewsUSA
Sackler family agrees to give up 'entire value' of Purdue Pharma in bid to settle opioid cases
But state attorneys general predict an imminent bankruptcy filing as settlement talks break down
NewsClimate Change
V&A director Tristram Hunt defends sponsorship from fossil fuel companies
The former Labour MP sides with Science Museum group's director Ian Blatchford in saying companies such as BP can 'be part of the solution' to climate change
CommentExhibitions
Museums cannot ignore artists’ values
Artists are increasingly concerned about the ethical principles of the museums and galleries in which they show their work
NewsSackler family
Musée du Louvre removes all mention of Sackler name from its galleries following protests
Activist group Pain says Paris museum has taped over or taken down plaques dedicated to the eponymous family whose pharmaceutical company is accused of fuelling the US opioid crisis
NewsVictoria & Albert Museum
V&A to mount major Iran exhibition in face of US sanctions
Museum’s director Tristram Hunt says securing loans and sponsorship is “more of a challenge” as tension grows between Trump and Tehran
NewsBritish Museum
British Museum director endorses controversial sponsor BP as part of future vision
Oil company will support one exhibition at the museum next year, but not a show dedicated to the people of the Arctic
NewsNational Portrait Gallery
Artists call for National Portrait Gallery to drop BP sponsorship
Gary Hume says funding for the arts is 'outweighed by the need to act urgently on the climate crisis'
Podcast
Should museums sell works of art? Plus, activism at the Whitney Biennial
After the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art's sale of its Rothko, we discuss the principles that guide deaccessioning in the US and speak to activists about the Whitney vice-chairman's problematic link to a weapons manufacturer
NewsTurner Prize
Stagecoach sponsorship of Turner Prize ends after pressure over bus firm founder’s homophobic views
Artists and dealers had written letters in protest over the involvement of Brian Souter’s firm
NewsSackler Trust
‘Like being married to a serial killer’: Hito Steyerl denounces Sackler sponsorship of museums
German artist urges art world to rally against cultural funding from embattled family at opening of her show at Serpentine Sackler Gallery
Podcast
Sackler sponsorship: take it or leave it? Plus, museum visitor figures
We examine the growing unease among British museums about accepting money from Sackler family members linked to the sale of the opioid OxyContin, and look at 2018's most visited shows and museums with Met director Max Hollein. Produced in association with Bonhams, auctioneers since 1793.
NewsSponsorship
Jewish Museum Berlin says it would no longer accept Sackler family donations
But the Sackler Staircase in the museum will keep its name
NewsSponsorship
Why is the British Museum still accepting tobacco sponsorship?
London institution has acquired 600 objects thanks to funding from Japan Tobacco International, makers of Benson & Hedges, Winston, Camel and Silk Cut
NewsSponsorship
Guggenheim Museum says it 'does not plan to accept any gifts' from the Sackler family
The move follows similar decisions by London museums
NewsSponsorship
South London Gallery returned funding to Sackler Trust last year
Plus, Nan Goldin's show at the National Portrait Gallery is expected to go ahead after the trust and London museum decided not to proceed with a £1m grant
NewsSponsorship
Tate to stop accepting donations from the Sackler Trust
The move follows a mutual decision by the National Portrait Gallery and the Sackler Trust to not proceed with a £1m grant
NewsSponsorship
London's National Portrait Gallery and Sackler Trust to 'not proceed' with £1m grant
Mutual decision comes amid controversy over trust's connection to Purdue Pharma, maker of OxyContin, a prescription painkiller linked to the opioid crisis
NewsMuseums & Heritage
Jerwood Gallery in Hastings to lose British art collection by November
Almost 300 Modern and contemporary works will be withdrawn amid funding dispute with the Jerwood Foundation
NewsProtest
Demonstrators take over British Museum in biggest-ever protest against oil sponsorships
Event, organised by grassroots climate justice group BP or not BP?, highlighted relationship between oil companies and war in Iraq
News
The Met is re-evaluating its gift acceptance policy in wake of Sackler lawsuits
Their family’s support “began decades before the opioid crisis” says president and CEO Daniel Weiss
NewsSponsorship
Imperial War Museum London receives 'generous' donation from Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich
The money will go towards new Holocaust Galleries due to open 2021
NewsArt Dubai 2018
BMW gives long-term boost to Art Dubai
The automobile giant signed a three-year partnership with the fair
NewsSponsorship
BAE Systems pulls sponsorship of Great Exhibition of the North after protests
The defence giant withdrew after Art not Arms petition condemned company’s sales to Saudi Arabia
NewsExhibitions
Revealed: the profits of staging a touring exhibition
Usually highly secret financial data on Burrell Collection's travelling show disclosed for forthcoming Glasgow City Council meeting
ArchiveFebruary 2015
Comment: The Tate should take BP’s money—and ask for more
Protests about the gallery’s lack of transparency concerning the energy company's sponsorship miss the point of how big business and the arts interact
ArchiveJanuary 2011
Is the symbiosis between corporations and the arts an outmoded tradition?
Investment in art has become less popular among US companies when more commercial options are available
ArchiveJanuary 2011
US art sponsorship suffering after economic crisis, survey shows
Corporate giving down 14% over three years according to Business Committee for the Arts
ArchiveMuseums
Dara Birnbaum comments on fostering the museum-sponsor relationship
Can a balance be found whereby both parties stand to gain from a partnership?
ArchiveFebruary 2010
French institutions have lost their integrity by relying on private sponsors, leading fundraiser says
Longtime arts and heritage patron Olivier de Rohan denounces the increasing influence of external bodies on museums' creative decisions
ArchiveJanuary 2009
UK museums manage dearth of exhibition sponsorship in the wake of economic downturn
Institutions must grit their teeth and hope for the intervention of private investors, as several large shows are going ahead without corporate sponsors
ArchiveArt Basel
Cartier steps in to replace Bulgari as Art Basel sponsor
The termination of Bulgari's funding provided the perfect opportunity for Cartier to take up the mantle
ArchiveSponsorship
US foundations back new charity handing out grants to artists
The United States artists fund fills the vacuum created after the government suspended the National Endowment for the Arts in the '90s
ArchiveFebruary 2006
Louvre gets a taste of US sponsorship as Atlanta's High Museum pays $10m to borrow works by Raphael, Rembrandt and Velázquez
The money will restore the French museum's 18th-century decorative art galleries and the collaboration seeks to improve US-French relations in the wake of the Iraq War
ArchiveNovember 2005
Siberian billionaire funds $3m Hermitage exhibition tour
Industrialist Oleg Deripaska has become the Russian museum’s most generous private donor—even if his support is part of a public relations initiative
ArchiveTate Modern
New installation for Tate Modern courtesy of UBS
The first rehang of the Bankside branch relies on funds provided by UBS - with conditions
ArchiveJuly 2005
Future of US museum sponsorship in question after split of tobacco giant Altria
The Whitney and the Brooklyn Museum could lose annual grants from the conglomerate, which gave $300m to charitable organisations over the past five years
ArchiveArt market
The $2.6 million Dalí retrospective comes to Philadelphia
A credit card company has spearheaded the massive publicity campaign for the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s exhibition
ArchiveJuly 2003
Fiat ends sponsorship of exhibitions at Palazzo Grassi
After 17 years and 15 shows, the Italian car manufacturer has withdrawn funding from major kunsthalle in Venice
ArchiveEconomics
Art & Business organisation report decline in British exhibition sponsorship
The 2001-2 recordings reflect struggling economy, registering a drop in art sponsorship since the millennium
ArchiveMarch 2003
The Dulwich Picture Gallery organises sponsored walk to meet £100,000 shortfall in annual budget
Museum director will don Clarks shoes and fill his pockets with Kendal Mint cakes for the 150-mile trek
Archive9/11
Plans for Iran exhibition at British Museum shelved as sponsor withdraws in aftermath of Twin Tower bombings
The exhibition, which would have highlighted the creative flourishing facilitated by members of Iranian royalty, may still become a reality in 2004 or 2005
ArchiveSolomon R. Guggenheim Museum
Deal struck with the Banca del Gottardo will put Guggenheim's vision for Venice satellite into motion
The money will be divided between improvements to the original Peggy Guggenheim Collection and a feasibility study for the Foundation’s expansion
ArchiveMuseums
Making up for the government's failures: Interview with Lord Sainsbury
Lord Sainsbury of Preston Candover has provided crucial support for many of Britain’s greatest art institutions
ArchiveFebruary 2000
In their need to raise sponsorship, are US museums risking the loss of their intellectual freedom?
We look beyond the Brooklyn Museum's Sensation exhibition into a troubling trend emerging across the sector
ArchiveSponsorship
Concentration of arts sponsorship in London causes other UK regions to lose out
Unevenness comes to light, as survey finds that almost 50% of the UK total was directed towards London
ArchiveSponsorship
US company mergers may result in sponsorship shrinkage
Standing out from the crowd with art sponsorship becomes unnecessary, as more and more of America's biggest corporations unify
ArchiveNovember 1996
Germany leads the way as Europe sees increased sponsorship of the arts
Record giving approached £1bn across the continent
ArchiveSponsorship
San Diego Museum of Art refuses funding from tobacco giant Philip Morris due to controversy
The museum has been widely criticised by Californians for indirectly condoning the company's exploitation of addiction
ArchiveJune 1996
German art heavyweights including Hans Haacke and Rosemarie Trockel sign document rejecting corporate sponsorship
If the State relinquishes its responsibility for funding culture, art will be restricted by private patronage, the letter argues
ArchiveSponsorship
Spanish to bring in laws that smooth the path for art sponsorship
Tax mandates pertaining to the acquisition of art will be eased for both donors and foundations
ArchiveFunding
London museums find individuals are still more generous than corporations
One spectacular example is the Hotung Gallery in the British Museum, funded through £2 million from the Hong Kong businessman Joseph Hotung
ArchiveOctober 1994
Corporations favour political correctness
Arts sponsorship is increasingly associated with marketing concerns rather than disinterested corporate philanthropy
ArchiveOctober 1994
The smoking dilemma: will Philip Morris's art support outlive its critics?
The tobacco giant remains one of the most important private funders of the arts in the US
ArchiveOctober 1994
Has the recession spelled the end of arts sponsorships by French companies, or just wiser spending?
Admical offers a number of explanations as to why figures have declined
ArchiveOctober 1994
The mechanics of sponsorship: an interview with one of the UK's biggest exhibition sponsors
James Joll of the international media giant Pearson plc explains the who, what, why and quid pro quo of corporate involvement in the arts
ArchiveInstitute of Contemporary Arts (ICA), London
ICA becomes first UK arts centre to enter into title sponsorship with Toshiba agreement
In exchange for the monetary support the car company will provide, all ICA branding will include their logo
ArchiveUnesco
"The Baroque World": A five-volume Atlas of baroque art, published by UNESCO
$2.5 million publication covering fifty countries
ArchiveApril 1994
Dutch government cuts Mondrian Foundation's sponsorship budget
Holland will not be participating in the Biennales of Sidney and São Paolo as a result
ArchiveJanuary 1994
French Culture Minister proposes amendment to art sponsorship policy in attempt to attract investors
France looks to Britain for models to increase private funding for the arts
ArchiveHolland
Holland’s code policing the sponsorship of cultural activities
The code was devised as a response to the normalisation of corporate funding, which could cause an uneven distribution of aid based on changing tastes
ArchiveBooks
Guide to procuring arts sponsorship published
The text includes illustrative examples alongside practical advice
ArchiveJanuary 1993
New Czech tax law to encourage private sponsorship for the arts
Tax will now be deductible for donations, but will a 2% relief be enough to make funding art worthwhile?
ArchiveMuseums
Philip Morris Companies Inc. receives award for their continued sponsorship of art from The Whitney Museum of American Art
The selection of the tobacco corporation as first winner is testament to its long-term relationship with the museum
ArchiveSponsorship
Private sponsorship rescues exhibition centred on Picasso's Rose Period
While for a time its fate hung in the balance due to insurance costs, the exhibition is now set to begin in Barcelona
CommentFunding
Museums will need ethical funders all the more after the coronavirus crisis
As institutions reopen their doors to a world that has changed significantly, public scrutiny of private money is not going away
Joe Dunning