cultural policy
Commissioner Klein: documenta management acts “devastatingly”
Anti-Semitism Commissioner Felix Klein during a press conference in Berlin. Photo: Soeren Stache/dpa-Zentralbild/dpa
© dpa-infocom GmbH
The anti-Semitism scandal at the documenta in Kassel continues to make waves. They are accused of not being interested in a serious dialogue there.
The federal government’s anti-Semitism commissioner, Felix Klein, has criticized the documenta management’s handling of allegations as “devastating” and called for consequences. “It is completely incomprehensible that the offers of support from the state of Hesse and the federal government to change the structures, especially with regard to the international effects, were rejected,” he told the newspapers of the Funke media group.
The lack of cooperation with the director of the Anne Frank educational institution (Frankfurt am Main), Meron Mendel, shows that “the documenta management is ultimately not interested in a serious dialogue,” said Klein. “It also shows a lack of respect for the German Bundestag that none of the responsible persons appeared before the culture committee and asked the legitimate questions of the parliamentarians.”
He has “understanding that those who are creative and interested in culture are now turning their backs on the documenta”. Klein hopes “that this will finally lead to the scandal being adequately processed and the necessary consequences drawn”.
The documenta fifteen in Kassel was shaken by the next scandal on Friday – two important actors withdrew. First, the head of the Anne Frank educational institution announced that he would no longer be available to advise the show, which had been heavily criticized for its anti-Semitic depictions. Later, the German artist Hito Steyerl announced her withdrawal from the exhibition.
Six months before the start of documenta fifteen, allegations of anti-Semitism against the Indonesian curatorial collective Ruangrupa had been raised. Shortly after the opening of the show, which is considered the most important exhibition for contemporary art alongside the Venice Biennale, a work with anti-Semitic imagery was discovered.
The banner “People’s Justice” by the Indonesian art collective Taring Padi was then taken down. As a consequence, the organizers of the exhibition had announced, among other things, that all other works would be checked for anti-Semitic content with the help of external experts, including Mendel.