The ignorance in Dachau’s cultural scene is shocking. It is reminiscent of the “documenta fifteen”, the Kassel anti-Semitism show, at which those responsible did not discover any trace of Jew hatred in the exhibited works of art. In this case it is not about anti-Semitism, but about the racist-colonial view of Walter von Ruckteschell, which the artist Anja Seelke – and not only she – has shown in the works, especially in the portraits of Africans in the so-called Lettow portfolio. One would like to think that Dachau would position itself, as is happening elsewhere in Germany, and at least talk about how to deal with the colonial legacy – but no such thing.
Certainly, Ruckteschell was not the outstanding artist among the many in Dachau’s history. Nevertheless, his name is inextricably linked to Dachau. The city has had his villa restored and is encouraging people to visit. And Ruckteschell was the founder and chairman of the Dachau Artists’ Association (KVD). That would be reason enough for a critical examination of his person and the veneration that has been shown to him; Especially since he was involved in the colonialist crimes in “German East Africa” as a soldier and adjutant of the later Kapp putschist Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck – the attitude of refusal of Boser & Co. almost turned into a scandal.
The KVD would be well advised not to completely lose sight of its own history – it’s not just a “museum question” but a part of German colonial history that has an impact on the present, for example as structural racism, which Senegalese asylum seekers, for example have to experience every day in Dachau. You would have to talk to them. The view from the ivory tower is also shaped by the colonial legacy – and exciting art would deal with it. The KVD – even in Dachau being an artist is existentially difficult – doesn’t have to organize its own exhibition right away, but there are a few personalities who could competently organize an event on the subject of Ruckteschell. And the Dachau Galleries and Museums Association? The chairman, District Administrator Stefan Löwl, resists and shifts responsibility to the city, because the Ruckteschell villa belongs to them. As if racist and colonial thought patterns weren’t a problem for society as a whole. Managing director Elisabeth Boser sees no reason to correct an earlier exhibition about Ruckteschell. The only question that remains is: as a taxpayer, do you have to put up with this because he finances this special-purpose association: this refusal, which ultimately leads to taking sides with someone like Ruckteschell?
Very bad, but from dealing with the National Socialist legacy we know what the refusers offer. One hears about Anja Seelke that she is too emotional, she doesn’t have the expertise, she’s not a historian, so she can’t evaluate Ruckteschell at all. As a literary scholar, she can of course work scientifically. And as an artist she can, and she does, break with traditional ways of seeing the world – which has always been the criterion for good art.