Public Art Private Money

Public funding for the arts is at a moment of crisis. With government spending on culture facing a reduction of up to 25% from next year, the impact is already being felt. The UK Film Council and Museum, Libraries and Archives Council are to be axed. A £45m government contribution to a new BFI film centre has been withdrawn and Arts Council funded organisations are being told to expect significant cuts.

Where should the arts look for its money? To private wealth and US-style philanthropy, as the government suggests? Or does greater corporate sponsorship - as the recent anti-BP protests at Tate and the British Museum highlight - spark new controversies? Could this current crisis be a spur for arts organisations to look beyond existing forms of patronage? Is it time to rethink the value system behind support for the arts in Britain? And, if so, what is the positive response to the cuts that goes further than just saying no?

A panel of speakers discuss the future of arts including Alex Beard (Deputy Director of Tate), John Woodward (Chief Executive Officer of the UKFC), Colin Tweedy (Chief Executive of Arts & Business), Marcus Romer (Artistic Director of Pilot Theatre, York Theatre Royal) and former Chairman of Arts Council England Christopher Frayling. Chairing the discussion will be BBC Radio 4 Front Row presenter John Wilson.