Update - 26.4.2024 - Original statement belowAs per our instagram post dated February 5, 2024, we, Pilvi Takala and Banu Cennetoğlu, have made the decision to cancel our exhibitions at n.b.k. Showroom in Berlin, which were originally scheduled to open in March and June 2024, respectively, and join @strikegermany in solidarity with Palestine.
The director of n.b.k., Marius Babias, responded to our decision to withdraw from the exhibitions through Berliner Zeitung on February 8, 2024, and April 4, 2024. Babias's statements not only misrepresent the events that led to our withdrawal but also highlight significant artistic, ethical, and political differences in our principles and values. Thus, we find it necessary to provide the following clarifications:
In January 2024, we requested a meeting with Babias to discuss our concerns about the ongoing genocide in Palestine and n.b.k.'s stance regarding the repression of Palestine solidarity in Germany. A meeting was planned. However the evening before the meeting, we were informed that Babias was unable to attend. To this day, Babias has never met us in person or communicated with us directly.Initially, our intention was to understand n.b.k.’s willingness to acknowledge the situation in Gaza, and to address, in whatever way they deemed appropriate, the silencing of Palestinian voices and allies in the culture scene in Germany. In the absence of Babias, we had extensive discussions with the curators, and made it clear that we condemn genocide and war crimes regardless of who the perpetrator is. We inquired about n.b.k.'s plans to publicly express their stance or, alternatively, if they would be supportive of artists intervening into exhibitions to respond to the war in Gaza and under which conditions.
To our disappointment, the conversation predominantly revolved around the institution’s inclination to refrain from “taking sides'' and maintaining a position of “neutrality.” Since neither maintaining a position of "neutrality" nor continuing with business as usual was an option for us in this context, we decided to present an artistic proposal a few days later. Below is an excerpt from our original proposition:“We would like to keep the showroom empty from March 2 to August 4 and use the allocated resources for both shows for a purpose that is more urgent to us as artists at this moment, namely to participate in the collective solidarity with Palestinians. This modest gesture can be articulated in simple words, which we can discuss and decide on with you together, in a way that doesn't put the institution at risk. Both of us have reliable relations with grassroots organizations in Palestine, and can take responsibility for redistribution of the funds that can be made available to us.”
Following a week of silence, the curators reached out to us via a WhatsApp call. Recognizing the impossibility of redistributing the production budget, we proposed to use only our artist fees to contribute to an organization in Palestine. At this stage, we deliberately refrained from selecting an organization, as we hoped this could be a subject of negotiation and discussion.
All of our suggestions to n.b.k. were deemed inconceivable, and ultimately rejected.
We are at a loss as to how our requests for dialogue and negotiation, integral to our artistic practice, could be dismissed as "attempts to instrumentalize conflicts for personal agendas" [1] and as an effort to “impose [our] respective political positions on the institution.” [2] In fact, by claiming neutrality Babias is imposing his very own political position onto the institution, making it yet another site of the repression of Palestine solidarity. We also firmly reject the idea that maintaining “the integrity, safety, autonomy, and independence of a cultural institution” [3] can be achieved through ideological silence on genocide on Gaza, or elsewhere for that matter. Never again should mean never again for anyone.
Institutions have never been neutral spaces, and the assertion of “universal principles formulated by the Enlightenment”[4] to justify the autonomy of art and its institutions disregards the realities of the art world. “After all, the argument for the autonomy of art can be used to argue for a wide range of conflicting ends, and is often deployed not to shield art from political intervention, but rather to suppress political expression through the arts and by artists.”[5]
The day Babias's interview was published, Shababeek for Contemporary Art, the last remaining art space in Gaza, suffered complete destruction along with its collection of 20,000 works. This devastating event took place during a two-week raid by Israeli forces on Al-Shifa hospital and the surrounding neighborhood in Gaza City.
Free Palestine.
April 26, 2024Banu Cennetoğlu and Pilvi Takala
--[1] Der 1969 gegründete Neue Berliner Kunstverein e.V. reagierte mit einem Statement, das der Berliner Zeitung exklusiv vorlag. „Wir sehen“, schrieb man, „vermehrt Versuche einer Instrumentalisierung von Konflikten für die persönliche Agenda und lehnen die Übernahme vorgegebener politischer Einstellungen ab.[2] Der n.b.k. hat in der Vergangenheit mit palästinensischen und israelischen Künstler:innen und Kurator:innen zusammengearbeitet, die sich in diesem Konflikt ganz explizit verortet haben, aber sie haben der Institution nicht ihre jeweiligen politischen Positionen aufzwingen wollen.[3] Aber als Institution möchte sich der n.b.k. politisch nicht instrumentalisieren lassen. Wir wollen die Integrität, den Schutzraum, die Autonomie und die Unabhängigkeit der Institution weiter aufrechterhalten.[4] Trotz all ihrer blinden Flecken hat die Aufklärung universelle Grundsätze zur Autonomie und Unabhängigkeit der Kunst und ihrer Institutionen formuliert, ihnen fühlen wir uns verpflichtet.[5] Banu Karaca, The National Frame - Art and State Violence in Turkey and Germany (New York: Fordham University Press, 2021), 25; 154.
5.2.2024We, two artists who were invited to open solo exhibitions at n.b.k. Showroom in Berlin in March and June 2024 respectively, have made the decision to cancel our shows and join Strike Germany.
At the beginning of 2024, we attempted to engage in a dialogue with n.b.k. to address our concerns and demands regarding the ongoing genocide in Palestine, as well as the silencing of Palestinian voices and their allies within the cultural scene in Germany.
Despite our hopes for collaboration, our conversations revealed that n.b.k. is unwilling to modify their current internal policies to demonstrate any disagreement with the repressive policies of the German state. Furthermore, they declined to accommodate an artistic gesture we proposed, which aimed to align with the collective solidarity with Palestine.Consequently we have been left with no option but to withdraw from our projects as we firmly believe that proceeding with "business as usual" is no longer an acceptable course of action today.
Banu Cennetoğlu and Pilvi TakalaRead more: Strike Germany
