The “Taring Padi” art group from Indonesia presented the work “Justice of the People” at the famous Documenta contemporary art exhibition in Kassel, provoking strong criticism.
The organizers of the exhibition Documenta 15 decided today to cover one of the exhibits, which was considered to be on display anti-Semitic clichés. The claim is rejected by the creators of the work.
THE “Taring Padi” artistic group from Indonesia presented the work “Justice of the People” at the famous Documenta contemporary art exhibition in Kassel, which runs from 18 June to 25 September, provoking intense critisism, both by Jewish organizations and by German politicians. Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier attended the opening of the exhibition at the weekend, but said he was “so angry” that he had not decided at the last minute whether to go to Kassel, stressing that of, one exceeds the limit “. Documenta and relevant politicians should be extremely careful when it comes to a state-funded event.
“But it was not,” Steinmeier added. “My personal view is that there is an anti-Semitic image here,” said Hesse Minister of Culture Angela Dorn, while the Federal Government’s spokeswoman for culture and media, Claudia Roth, noted that “human dignity, protection from anti-Semitism and “Racism and all forms of inhumanity are the basis of our coexistence” and stressed that “here artistic freedom reaches its limit”. The president of the Central Jewish Council, Joseph Schuster, called on those responsible for the exhibition to “draw their own conclusions”, noting that the creators had “crossed the red line”. According to German media, the prosecutor’s intervention was even requested.
In the project, a Jew is depicted with sharp fangs, snake tongue, bloodshot eyes and the SS badge on his hat, while a Mossad agent with the Jewish star of David has the face of a pig. “This is a classic anti-Semitism with the support of the state, a complete overthrow of the border and an open hatred against the Jews,” said Elio Adler, president of the Values Initiative – German Positions.
The organizers, after days of discussion, decided today to cover the project, which is on display in the central square of Kassel, and to post a text explaining their decision. The director of the exhibition, Sabine Sorman, clarified that the work in question was not created specifically for Documenta 15, but for exhibitions in other countries, and expressed her regret “for the pain it caused”. The American Jewish Community in Berlin has demanded that Ms. Sorman be removed from the event, while German-Israeli Association President Volker Beck has announced that he has filed a lawsuit against the report.
“This is such a clumsy and unanimous anti-Semitic expression that one wonders why such discussions were needed, if such an image can still be displayed in the city center,” said Charlotte Knobloch, president of the Jewish Community of Munich and Upper Bavaria. irrational “decision of the organizers. “The least they had to do was withdraw the exhibit altogether, which would benefit other artists as well,” he added.
The Indonesian team of creators, which gave its consent to cover part of it, said that “the work is not related in any way to anti-Semitism”, expressed its regret “for the fact that its details were misunderstood” and apologized.
