THE Guardian today reported that after nearly three decades, the British Museum’s controversial sponsorship deal with British Petroleum (BP) is coming to an end. The news would mean an almost complete withdrawal of the oil giant from the British art world, as partnerships with other publicly funded institutions, including the Tate and the National Portrait Gallery, have also come to an end in recent years following pressure from anti-fossil fuel activists.
THE Guardian claims to have obtained documents via a freedom of information request in which the museum stated that “there are no other contracts or agreements in effect between the museum and BP”.
However, in a statement to Hyperallergic and other media, the museum refuted claims that it was ending its relationship with the company.
“In times of reduced public funding, corporate sponsors like bp enable us to fulfill our mission to provide unique learning experiences for our visitors,” a British Museum spokesperson said. “We have not ended our partnership with bp. bp is a valuable long-term supporter of the Museum and our current partnership continues until this year.
Defenders who have long require that the British Museum is parting ways with BP welcomed the news as reported by the Guardian as a “massive victory”.
“BP’s sponsorship of the arts was never about philanthropy: it was a cynical strategy to clear its toxic reputation and advance its business while reaping record profits from climate breakdown,” said Sarah Waldron, co-director of campaign group Culture Unstained, said in a statement shared with Hyperallergic.
Climate activists have staged several protests and demonstrations at the British Museum as part of a call to end its deal with the oil company over the past few years. Culture Unstained notes that despite BP’s claims to be “net-zero” by 2050, according to its 2023 first quarter reportthe company generated $5 billion in underlying earnings at replacement cost, higher than analyst forecast predictions.
The British Museum faced additional pressure in 2019 when eminent novelist Ahdaf Soueif resigned of its board, citing in part the museum’s failure to end its sponsorship of BP, which it said was an “issue of critical concern to people who should be its primary constituency”.
Earlier this year, the museum announcement at its annual trustees’ dinner that the institution pledged to neutralize its carbon footprint through its so-called “Project Rosetta.” Yet he did not address his relationship with BP. The partnership was set to be renewed in February, but it was unclear if the museum would go ahead with the deal.
Editor’s note 6/2/23 5pm EST: This article has been updated to include a statement from the British Museum refuting the of the guardian initial report.
