Yesterday, Liberate Tate (Twitter, website) staged another of its headline-grabbing performative protests in the Duveens Hall of Tate Britain.

A naked man lay down in the foetal position while several veiled figures covered him in an oil-like substance (video below)

The performance lasted for 87 minutes to commemorate the 87 days over which oil was spilled into the Gulf of Mexico, beginning exactly one year ago today.

Shot by You And I films

The protest was also covered in the Telegraph, Evening Standard, Bloomberg and the Guardian.

A letter published in the Guardian yesterday, signed by around 165 artists and writers, called for Tate to end its relationship with BP.

At Channel 4 News, Matthew Cain writes:

It’s fascinating to look at what happened with sponsorship of the arts by tobacco companies in the 1980s. At one point companies like Imperial Tobacco funded practically everything, covering the entire exterior of the Royal Opera House with cigarette advertisements for one stunt and, interestingly, sponsoring for years what’s since become the BP Portrait Award.

But gradually, public opinion shifted to the point where this association was deemed unacceptable. What Liberate Tate are saying is that public opinion should now shift a bit more so that oil companies like BP find themselves for the first time on the other side of the line.

Channel 4 News also covered the event on their news bulletin.

Reader comments

1. Liberal Conspiracy

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2. Ellie Mae O'Hagan

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3. sunny hundal

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4. Jessica Fitch

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8. David

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9. Rachel Garman

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10. Pucci Dellanno

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