The British Museum’s inaugural fundraising gala on Saturday, October 18 drew the expected big-name artists, art world movers and shakers, politicians, and celebrities alike—plus protestors with the group Energy Embargo for Palestine. During the event, an unnamed woman gained access to the museum’s Great Court via her role as a waitress, according to The Art Newspaper (TAN).
Energy Embargo for Palestine, an organization based in Britain, posted a video on its Instagram account of the woman on stage next to George Osborne, chair of the museum’s board of trustees. She holds a sign reading “DROP BP NOW” and criticizes the museum for accepting a £50 million ($67 million) sponsorship from an oil and gas company that is “causing climate collapse” and “actively enabling the genocide in Gaza.” During the disruption, Osborne appears to be nodding politely while a few in the audience boo.
The protestor on stage specifically calls out the wealthy Ambani family, who owns Reliance Industries, an “oil, gas, and surveillance” company based in India. The gala co-chair was Isha Ambani, daughter of Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance. Isha Ambani has been director of the company’s retail arm since 2014. Reliance Industries and the Reliance Foundation were also the main sponsors of “Ancient India: living traditions,” which had been on view at the British since the spring and closed this past weekend on Sunday, October 19. The show gave the Ball its pink theme, which was inspired by the “colours and light of India.”
Tickets to the British Museum’s inaugural fundraising gala cost £2,000 ($2,700) each; TAN reported that ticket sales alone raised over $2 million in support of the museum’s international partnerships. There was also a silent auction, though proceeds from that portion of the event have not been announced yet. (According to the Guardian, lots included a pet portrait painted by Tracey Emil and a private tour of Coco Chanel’s Parisian apartment.)
The British Museum has been embroiled in controversy surrounding its financial arrangement with BP, with artists and academics calling on the museum to sever its ties with the oil and gas company. The Pink Ball protester’s “£50 million sponsorship” comment refers to the museum’s announcement in 2023 that it would receive that amount of funding from BP over the next decade, in order to “safeguard the museum for future generations.”
