£370,000 package of support for arts education at five leading arts institutions was launched by The RTZ Corporation on June 3, their first venture into arts sponsorship. At the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, the Royal Academy of Arts and the Royal College of Art, scholarships will be offered to British and overseas students, while the Centre for Young Musicians will run holiday music courses and master-classes. A new youth dance company will be created by the Lilian Bayliss Theatre.
The package of support also includes a week-long RTZ Festival of Arts to be held at St James’s, Piccadilly, in October, with performers from the beneficiary organisations. Contact John Senior, RTZ, on 071 930 2399.
The London South Bank’s National Touring Exhibition service starts its recently announced £1 million sponsorship programme from BT in August with an exhibition Flora Photographica – Masterpieces of Flower Photography. This opens at the Serpentine in London and goes to Edinburgh, Manchester before closing in Coventry in March 1993. The three year package from BT aims to allow thousands of people to see important international works of arts at venues that could not otherwise afford to stage such exhibitions.
BT has a £2.5 million arts programme seeks to improve the quality of life and to make the arts more accessible. For example, the Halifax-based Northern Ballet enjoys a £500,000 sponsorship package, announced in February, after BT decided to cease funding the Royal Shakespeare Company after four years. Contact Stephen Thacker, BT, on 071 356 6597.
The results of a survey of companies who have benefited in 1991 from the government’s Business Sponsorship Incentive Scheme, announced on June 9, revealed that 90% felt the sponsorship was good value for money and fully or partially met their objectives. A similar percentage planned to repeat sponsorship in future, the BSIS award having contributed to their success. Contact Lorna Gradden, ABSA, on 071 378 8143.
A new children’s museum called Eureka!, the first of its kind in the UK, was officially opened by HRH The Prince of Wales on July 9. Housed in a new building which was designed to be part of the exhibition on a 12 acre site adjacent to Halifax Railway Station, Eureka! teaches children aged five to twelve about the world they live in using a hands-on education approach. The driving force behind the project was Vivien Duffield and the Clore and Vivien Duffield Foundations made major grants. Notable among the 66 companies and trusts who gave support were Allied-Lyons, Coca-Cola, Marks & Spencer, Nestlé UK and WH Smith. The project also received support form several government departments. Contact Helen Rees, Eureka!, on 0422 348844.
The first-ever Theatre and Disability Conference, held on 26 June in Manchester, was sponsored by the TSB Foundation for England and Wales. Organised by the Arts Council, it brought together funders, theatre and training organisations with disabled artists and practitioners. Discussion covered topics such as integration, casting, employment and training. Among those who attended were Sian Vasey, Chair of the National Disability Arts Forum, Lord Rix, Chairman of Mencap and Lord Palumbo, Chairman of the Arts Council. Contact Kathleen Duncan, TSB, on 071 606 7070 or Sue Rose, Arts Council, on 071 973 6458.
Minister of State for Education, Baroness Blatch, attended the launch on July 8 of two new arts education resources from BP. Designed to meet National Curriculum requirements in English and Arts, the Poetry Resources Files come in two versions for primary and secondary schools, while the British Art in the 20th Century video is a spin off from the eponymous Royal Academy exhibition in 1988.
BP also sponsored the Royal Opera House’s Week behind the Scenes held July 20-24 for young people aged 16-21 with an interest in theatre. It covered all aspects of opera and ballet production and included the opportunity to discuss a potential career in the arts with Royal Opera House artists and staff. Contact Lally Carlton-Jones, BP, on 071 496 4350.
The European Community Youth Orchestra is performing at the Proms in August towards the end of their seven country summer tour, as part of a pan-European sponsorship package worth £700,000 from Digital Equipment Corporation. In the UK, Digital has concentrated on dance in order to make a commercial impact, but is now diversifying. Contact Julie Cork, Crowcroft Gourley, on 071 251 1191
At an ABSA awards dinner held at the Tate Gallery on June 29 and sponsored by Reed International, David Maroni of Olivetti was presented with the Goodman Award for outstanding individual achievement in encouraging business support for the arts, while Clive Gillinson, Chief Executive of the London Symphony Orchestra, received the Garret Award. This year, for the first time, two Reed International Awards worth £10,000 each were made to arts organisations of the winners’ choice – the Royal College of Art and the LSO respectively. Contact Caroline Kay, ABSA, 071 378 8143.
The 1992 National Heritage Museum of the Year Awards were announced on June 7. Sponsored by British Gas, there were nearly 40 entries. Manx National Heritage won the main award and the subsidiary awards were for industrial/social history and educational initiatives, sponsored by Unilever and BP International respectively. Contact Jackie Dawson, British Gas, on 071 821 1444.
English Estates has announced an unusual sponsorship package by bringing together four regional repertory theatres in presenting a flagship production. The Liverpool PLayhouse, Plymouth Theatre Royal, the West Yorkshire Playhouse and the Nottingham Playhouse are the partners. Contact English Estates on 091 487 8941.
Comment
The opening of Eureka! is a welcome addition to the diverse arts and culture scene. It enjoys considerable corporate support, although the project would never have got off the ground without a heavy dollop of old-fashioned private philanthropy.
So how is corporate sponsorship holding up in the recession? The word from ABSA is “remarkably well”. Some companies are indeed making cuts, but others are increasing. The overall trend is to make the money work harder – to obtain a clearer benefit in corporate image and product marketing. This trend seemed to reach its apotheosis when the media recently incorrectly reported BT had cut the RSC in favour of Agatha Christie on ITV. In fact, as reported above, Northern Ballet was the beneficiary and the TV sleuth a red herring, but the trend towards demonstrable returns and value for money is as pronounced in the arts as in the rest of corporate involvement activity.
One factor is different, however. The BSIS has played a major role in keeping arts sponsorship going and introducing new sponsors even in the depths of recession – RTZ for example. Would a government matched-funding Community Involvement Incentive Scheme, perhaps targeted at small and medium-sized companies, achieve the same for charitable projects?
COMMENTS