The British Museum has severed ties with fossil fuel company BP after a partnership that lasted 27 years, marking a significant victory for environmental activists. This move signifies BP’s withdrawal from the British art world after decades of philanthropic involvement with institutions such as the Tate and the National Portrait Gallery.
The museum confirmed the termination of the partnership in a statement, which was first reported by The Guardian. According to the statement, “there are no other contracts or agreements in effect between the museum and BP.” The most recent five-year contract between the two parties expired in February, and in the preceding months, numerous academics and museum staff urged the British Museum to seize the opportunity for meaningful divestment. In newly obtained disclosures by attorneys representing the environmentalist group Culture Unstained, the British Museum acknowledged that certain terms of the previous agreement will continue to be honored due to a verbal understanding allowing BP to exercise its “supporter benefits” until the end of the year. However, the specific details of these benefits were not disclosed, and they do not relate to programming or museum projects.
ARTnews has reached out to BP for comment on the British Museum’s decision.
The British Museum’s sponsorship by BP has long been a source of controversy among museum professionals, artists, and activists. Groups like BP or Not BP? have organized numerous protests at the museum in recent years.
In 2021, dozens of academics and museum workers expressed their opposition to the British Museum’s ongoing financial association with BP in an open letter. The letter stated, “Refusing further sponsorship from BP would send a strong signal that fossil fuel corporations—like tobacco and arms companies—are no longer welcome in cultural life. By diminishing BP’s ‘social license to operate,’ it would help to support our society’s transition away from fossil fuels.”
The Tate Museum network ended its 26-year partnership with BP in 2016, declaring that it would no longer accept funding from the company. In 2019, the National Galleries of Scotland also discontinued BP sponsorship for its recurring portraiture exhibition. The Southbank Centre, an arts complex in London that includes the Hayward Gallery, followed suit in 2020 by ending its relationship with Shell.
The British Museum’s decision to part ways with BP reflects a growing trend of cultural institutions reevaluating their associations with fossil fuel companies. It sends a powerful message about the role these corporations play in shaping our cultural landscape and supports the ongoing global transition away from fossil fuels.