Prominent German artist Hito Steyerl withdrew from Documenta 15, an influential art show held in Kassel, central Germany, amid an ongoing antisemitism scandal.
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Steyerl announced her decision to pull her artworks in a letter to the organizers obtained by Die Zeit. She condemned the art show for not taking enough control over "antisemitic content displayed at Documenta 15 at its central location."
"I have no faith in the organization's ability to mediate and translate complexity," the artist was quoted as saying, referring to "repeated refusal to facilitate a sustained and structurally anchored inclusive debate around the exhibition."
She also cited "unsafe and underpaid working conditions for some of the staff" among her reasons to withdraw.
Steyerl's departure came shortly after Meron Mendel, the director of the Anne Frank Educational Institution in Frankfurt, resigned from his consulting role on Documenta 15.
Documenta came under heavy criticism over displaying a 60-foot banner work by Indonesian art group Taring Padi that was accused of containing "antisemitic caricature." The mural, which was later removed, depicted a pig wearing a helmet blazoned "Mossad," referring to Israel's intelligence agency. The same work pictured a man with sidelocks often associated with Orthodox Jews, fangs and bloodshot eyes, wearing a black hat with the SS-insignia.
This article was first published by i24NEWS.
