{"id":844081,"date":"2026-09-11T12:10:13","date_gmt":"2026-09-11T12:10:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/844081\/"},"modified":"2026-09-11T12:10:13","modified_gmt":"2026-09-11T12:10:13","slug":"portrait-of-bayeux-tapestry-exhibition-sponsor-goes-on-view-at-british-museum-amid-scrutiny-over-ties-to-idf-the-art-newspaper","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/844081\/","title":{"rendered":"Portrait of Bayeux Tapestry exhibition sponsor goes on view at British Museum amid scrutiny over ties to IDF – The Art Newspaper"},"content":{"rendered":"

A portrait of the billionaire entrepreneur Igor Tulchinsky has gone on public view in the British Museum\u2019s Bayeux Tapestry<\/a> exhibition, amid scrutiny over his ties to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). The Belarus-born, United States-based Tulchinksy is the lead sponsor of the exhibition, having reportedly donated \u00a35m towards production costs.<\/p>\n

The portrait<\/a> is by the British artist Jonathan Yeo, known for his depictions<\/a> of King Charles III, unveiled in 2024, and the former US president George W. Bush, a controversial collage made from pornographic images created in 2007.<\/p>\n

Yeo wrote on Instagram that he is \u201chonoured that this portrait was commissioned to mark\u00a0Igor\u00a0Tulchinsky\u2019s sponsorship of the Bayeux Tapestry\u2019s opening in London and that it will hang in the British Museum for the duration of what is already a legendary exhibition\u201d. Charlotte Appleyard, the director of development at the British Museum, comments on the same post: \u201cYou\u2019re brilliant and we\u2019re very grateful.\u201d At the time of publication, the museum declined to say how the work was commissioned and its cost. The Art Newspaper understands it was not commissioned as part of the sponsorship.<\/p>\n

Tulchinsky\u00a0emigrated to the US as a child from Belarus. He is the founder and chief executive of WorldQuant, a quantitative investment firm with $17bn in assets according to\u00a0Forbes, which values his personal fortune at $1.7bn.<\/p>\n

Last year Tulchinsky donated $1m<\/a> to the Trump-Vance inaugural committee\u2014the organisation funding the 2025 presidential inauguration of Donald Trump and vice-president JD Vance. In 2025, he launched<\/a> a venture capital operation in Israel called WorldQuant Genesis, focused on investments in early-stage deep-tech companies.<\/p>\n

According to the news publication CTech, the fund has invested in NavAiro, which CTech describes as \u201can Israeli defense-tech startup developing solutions to counter swarms of low-cost drones\u201d. Tulchinsky hired a former IDF commander, Saar Tzur, to manage the fund. WorldQuant, the British Museum and Jonathan Yeo have been contacted for comment about these affiliations.<\/p>\n

Tulchinksy was in conversation with Appleyard at the annual Art Business Conference <\/a>in London earlier this week, explaining why he wanted to back the blockbuster Bayeux show and the details that stand out. \u201c[The part] where people\u2019s heads are cut off\u2014that made an impression on me,\u201d he said, adding that he thinks of the medieval masterpiece as a \u201cdata set\u201d with its vast cast of characters and animals.<\/p>\n

The Bayeux Tapestry exhibition has proven to be one of the most highly anticipated shows to open in the UK in recent times. The first set of public tickets sold out within hours, raising around \u00a32.5m for the museum. Around one million visitors are expected by the time the exhibition closes on 11 July 2027.<\/p>\n