The Financial Times analyzes the current protest fervor over the presence of sponsorship and advertising dollars currently at play in the contemporary art world, noting major disputes at the São Paolo and Gwangju Biennials, as well as the ongoing protests over BP’s sponsorship of the Tate.  “Creativity has become . . .instrumentalized both by capitalism and the nation state,” says São Paulo curator Charles Esche. (more…)

Antony Gormley’s Event Horizon, the iconic sculpture project that places life-size casts of the artist’s body atop various buildings in an area, has been cancelled in Hong Kong following the pullout of sponsor J.P. Morgan.  The bank pulled its sponsorship after one of its employees leapt from the top of its office building in the Chinese city. (more…)

The Tate Modern has signed a landmark sponsorship deal with the Hyundai Automobile Corporation, an 11-year commitment to commissions for the museum’s Turbine Hall, making it the largest corporate partnership the organization has ever agreed to.  “These commissions have been reflecting major steps, major transformations, major disruptions in the history of contemporary art,” says Tate Modern Director Chris Dercon. “Contemporary art is evolving in a different way than just materials and methods. We are faced with a global world of art.” (more…)