James MacMillan, the Scottish composer, has attacked the 171 artists who this week condemned BP’s sponsorship of the arts in Britain, claiming that they had scored a “spectacular own goal”.
He described the group as “goons” who deserved “public mockery” for their action, which could cause big companies to think twice before pursuing arts sponsorship deals.
The comments, in MacMillan’s blog, follow the publication of a letter in The Guardian on Monday that lamented BP’s sponsorship of Tate Britain in light of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
The 171 signatories said BP’s logo was a stain on Tate’s international reputation and claimed that such cultural associations detracted attention from the damage that big oil companies were inflicting on the environment. The letter coincided with a party to celebrate the 20th anniversary of BP’s sponsorship deal with Tate.
MacMillan, who is also in demand internationally for his conducting skills, said yesterday that the group had not considered the impact their letter could have on future funding. “I couldn’t decide whether they were just being stupid, gesturally romantic in true luvvy style, or downright hypocritical” he wrote. “They were certainly being presumptuous in the implication that the arts community would support them. I for one do not, and I know many others involved in culture who would profoundly disagree with their Luddite, eco-fascist Utopianism.
Advertisement
“Why should private companies and individuals look on the arts as a sensible, inviting sector with which to associate now?”
Davey Anderson, the Scottish playwright, director and composer, who was among the signatories of the letter, defended its uncompromising message. “We have to be honest if we don’t agree with what the company does and the way it operates, even though we are taking money for the arts,” he said. “There is a big debate to be had about arts funding... about big business and its relationship with the arts, and what big business gets out of it.”