Kassel (dpa) – Months before the start of the documenta fifteen art exhibition in Germany, one of the world’s most important contemporary art shows, a heated discussion has flared up over anti-Semitism.
Accusations that there were anti-Semitic tendencies in the programme have been widely reported in the German media.
On Wednesday, the documenta and the Museum Fridericianum in the city of Kassel firmly rejected the accusations of anti-Semitism, and received support from local politicians.
The basis of documenta is freedom of expression on the one hand and the rejection of anti-Semitism, racism, extremism, Islamophobia and any form of violent fundamentalism on the other, the organization said.
«The right of all people to self-determination in peace, dignity and security is fundamental for the documenta fifteen team,» the statement said.
«Falsifying reports or racist defamation, as is currently being brought against those involved in documenta fifteen, prevent critical dialogue and productive debate.»
The 15th edition of documenta is scheduled to take place in the city of Kassel from June 18 to September 25.
A local group called «Alliance against anti-Semitism Kassel» had in a blog earlier this month criticized the curators of documenta fifteen – Indonesian art collective Ruangrupa – for including artists and organizations that they said supported a cultural boycott of Israel.
Kassel risked becoming a «place of anti-Israeli and anti-Semitic agitation» during documenta, the blog said.
The alliance clarified the blog entry on Tuesday, writing on Facebook that «in no way … did we accuse the creators or the curators or other contributors of documenta fifteen of general anti-Semitism.»
Hesse’s Art Minister Angela Dorn, who is also deputy chairperson of the documenta supervisory board, said importance and defence of Israel’s right to exist are «inseparably linked to [Germany’s] historical responsibility.» Kassel is located in the German state of Hesse.
She said she was sure that documenta fifteen could make an important contribution to «bringing this German view, sharpened by history, into a constructive dialogue with the perspectives of international artists with their respective horizons of experience.»
By Nicole Schippers and Robin Powell, dpa
