London’s National Portrait Gallery (NPG) has removed a video installation by British artist Helen Cammock following a dispute over the portrayal of Winston Churchill‘s role in the 1943 Bengal famine. The London museum faced criticism for the video, which accused Churchill of causing a colonial famine in India.
The work, titled “Persistence,” was commissioned by the NPG as part of a project featuring nine artists who offered a reflective approach to portrait art. Cammock’s installation was first exhibited at the museum in September 2025 and was intended to remain on display until August 2026. The museum stated that the work “challenges the position of the National Portrait Gallery as an institution known primarily for the representation and glorification of famous personalities.”
Accusations and reaction
In the 40-minute film, which she narrates, Cammock recounts the military campaigns of English statesman Oliver Cromwell in Ireland during the 1600s and compares him to Winston Churchill. She claims that Cromwell “mass-starved people, somewhat similar to Winston Churchill’s deliberate starvation of the Indian population.”
The conservative newspaper The Telegraph criticized this comment—the only mention of Churchill in the video—as inaccurate in an article dated June 14. The controversy escalated when historian Andrew Roberts called for the removal of the work in an open letter to the NPG, signed by 50 current and former members of the House of Lords, including Churchill’s grandson Nicholas Soames. The letter described the portrayal of the famous British prime minister in the video as an “ideologically motivated tirade.” “The accusation that [the famine] was deliberately caused by Churchill on the Bengalis is vile and despicable. It is also historically absurd,” the authors added.
Historical disputes and the artist’s decision
Roberts, a biographer of Churchill, stated that the 1943 Bengal famine was primarily caused by a typhoon, and that Churchill’s administration took steps to send grain as soon as they became aware of the situation. However, Churchill’s role in the tragedy, which resulted in the deaths of about 3 million people in India, remains a contentious issue. In 1981, Nobel Prize-winning economist Amartya Sen argued that the famine was not due to a food shortage but rather a sharp rise in prices driven by Britain’s military spending, exacerbated by inequality and policy failures.
Initially, the National Portrait Gallery stated that Cammock‘s work reflected “her personal reflections on historical and current events.” “We support the freedom of artistic expression, but we do not necessarily endorse the views expressed by any of the artists represented in the gallery,” the NPG added. However, the artist, a winner of the Turner Prize, ultimately chose to withdraw her video installation. “We respect her decision,” the gallery stated. “Likewise, we acknowledge the views of those who were offended by what was said in the film.”
“There is incredible pressure on artists and art institutions to succumb to external pressure; to be at best indulgent and at worst silent,” Cammock stated. “I do not accept this pressure. Questioning, challenging, and exploring ideas and histories is vital for a healthy society, and art is an integral part of this.”
Source: Euronews