My Great Exhibition protest
SINGER CALLS OFF HER GREAT EXHIBITION SAGE APPEARANCE
A SINGER has pulled out of performing as part of the Great Exhibition of the North after raising objections to the event being sponsored by a weapon manufacturer.
A petition opposing BAE System’s sponsorship of the event has attracted more than 700 signatures.
Nadine Shah had been due to perform at the Sage Gateshead in June as part of the Great Exhibition’s cultural line-up.
However, just days after declaring how honoured she was to be a part of the event, she tweeted to say she was pulling out due to the weapons giant’s sponsorship deal.
Shah tweeted: “I will no longer be playing the @GreatNorth2018 festival now that I have discovered BAE Systems are a sponsor. I am disgusted to hear of their involvement and refuse to be in any way associated with them. I encourage all artists involved to follow suit.”
A spokesperson for BAE Systems said: “BAE Systems employs more than 18,000 people in the North of England and is a world leader in engineering innovation, manufacturing and technology. “BAE Systems is supporting the Great Exhibition of the North as part of its commitment to addressing the UK skills shortage by encouraging more young people to consider STEM [science, technology, engineering and maths] careers.” Tickets for Shah’s concert at the Sage on June 24 are now listed as ‘unavailable.’ Billed as the country’s biggest event of 2018, with a target audience reach of three million people, the Exhibition is designed to tell the story of the whole of the North of England through its innovators, artists, designers and businesses. It is due to start on June 22. BAE Systems is among the world’s largest defence companies and one of the UK’s biggest manufacturers. It has a large base in Washington, Tyne and Wear, as well as centres at Preston and Barrow in Cumbria. The company has said it is proud to be sponsoring the event as one of the largest employers in the north of England.
I encourage all artists involved in the Great Exhibition of the North the to follow suit Nadine Shah
However, a petition set up by Leeds artist Jill Gibbon has called for people to boycott the three-month event because of the company’s dealings with Saudi Arabia and the impact on the war in Yemen.
The online petition says: “The Great Exhibition of the North claims to offer family-friendly fun. This is totally at odds with its with association with BAE systems.”
The government has put up a £5m grant for the event. Lead partners for the event are the Sage, the Baltic, the BBC, the NewcastleGateshead Initiative and the Great Run Company.
BAE is listed as a premier partner alongside Virgin Trains and Accenture.
Sir Gary Verity, chair of the Great Exhibition of the North, said the Great Exhibition is a “once-in-a-lifetimeopportunity” and is only possible because of private-sector support.
He said: “Our collective focus, working with all of our funders, supporters and contributors, is to make the very most of this opportunity to change perceptions of the North of England and drive future growth and success.
“Each of our sponsors makes an important contribution to helping us achieve this aim. BAE Systems employs more than 18,000 people in the North of England and is a world leader in engineering innovation, manufacturing and technology. BAE Systems is supporting the Great Exhibition of the North as part of its commitment to addressing the UK skills shortage.
“Organisations such as Arts Council England and Heritage Lottery Fund, meanwhile, are supporting the delivery of our artistic content, including the walking trails and commissions, concerts and exhibitions.”
A spokesperson for the Sage said: “We are currently in discussions with Great Exhibition of the North partners in relation to some of the concerns raised regarding the festival.
“While we continue to have these conversations, we have temporarily removed the option to buy tickets to some of the Great Exhibition of the North concerts held here at Sage Gateshead. We hope that they will be made available again very soon.”
Abigail Pogson, Sage Gateshead managing director, and Baltic director Sarah Munro jointly said: “We acknowledge the concerns raised by artists and our partners in connection to the sponsorship of the Great Exhibition.
“We wish to reassure our artists, partners and stakeholders that Arts Council England is supporting the delivery of our artistic content. We are not in receipt of funds from BAE Systems.
“Our conversations and commissions with artists and partners began some months and years ago, well in advance of the announcement of BAE Systems as a Premier Partner of the Great Exhibition of the North.”