The artists Kate Nolan, Mark Curran, Clare Gallagher, Ruby Wallis, Sara McCarroll, Caleb Daly & Luke Ryan, Dragana Jurišić, Miriam O’Connor, Mandy O’Neill, Emer Gillespie and others have formally announced their withdrawal from a major group exhibition featuring contemporary photography from Ireland to open in June at Haus am Kleistpark in Berlin. The exhibition titled, ‘Changing States: Ireland in the 21st Century’, is organised by Photo Museum Ireland, IKS Düsseldorf and Haus am Kleistpark. The exhibition is part of the Government of Ireland’s year long programme of cultural events in Germany – ‘Zeitgeist24’.
This comes following months of exchange with Photo Museum Ireland, regarding the ongoing repression and violence in Berlin and Germany and cancellations of voices stating opposition to the ongoing horror in Gaza and the violence in the Occupied West Bank. The group of artists then recently wrote directly to the three institutions involved with a formal statement and request and received no response.
All the artists wish to state that the reason for their non-participation is in response to the call by STRIKE GERMANY (see below) for international cultural workers to withdraw from participating in any cultural institutions in Germany due to the ongoing violent repression, intimidation and cancellation of individuals who express any support for the calling to an end of the ongoing “plausible genocide” (International Court of Justice) in Gaza and brutal violence in the Occupied West Bank. Many of these incidents are documented by the project, Archive of Silence (see below).
Berlin is home to the largest Palestinian community in Europe while Germany is the second largest supplier of weapons to Israel after the United States, accounting for 47% in 2023 (Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI)). The weekly reports of violence and brutality at demonstrations in Berlin in support of Palestine extending to the arrest of activists, raiding of homes and media profiling including members of the Palestinian and Jewish communities for no apparent reason other than their support for justice.
In such a context and with little possibility of a ceasefire in sight, the artists as activists state clearly that they can no longer participate and their withdrawal is an act of full solidarity with all those experiencing this violent and brutal repression within Germany and centrally, those suffering the continuing horrific attacks in Gaza and the Occupied West Bank.
The artists had requested that Photo Museum Ireland, IKS Düsseldorf and Haus am Kleistpark:
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formally acknowledge the absence of their work, including the names of all artists, including those who withdrew prior to May 20th, 2024, to be physically and publicly displayed in the physical exhibition space and in all online and published media in relation to the exhibition.
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publicly display in the physical exhibition space and in all online and published media in relation to the exhibition these three paragraphs which outline the reasons for their withdrawal:
‘All the artists wish to state the reason for their non-participation is in response to the call by STRIKE GERMANY for international cultural workers to withdraw from participating in any cultural institutions in Germany due to the ongoing violent repression, intimidation and cancellation of individuals who express any support for the calling to an end of the ongoing ‘plausible genocide’ (ICJ) in Gaza and brutal violence in the Occupied West Bank. Many of these incidents are documented by the project, Archive of Silence.
Berlin is home to the largest Palestinian community in Europe while Germany is the second largest supplier of weapons to Israel after the United States, accounting for 43% in 2023. The weekly reports of violence and brutality at demonstrations in Berlin in support of Palestine extending to the arrest of activists, raiding of homes and media profiling including members of the Palestinian and Jewish communities for no apparent reason other than their support for justice.
In such a context and with little possibility of a ceasefire in sight, the artists as activists state clearly that they can no longer participate and their withdrawal is an act of full solidarity with all those experiencing this violent and brutal repression within Germany and centrally, those suffering the continuing horrific attacks in Gaza and the Occupied West Bank.’
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That the three institutions acknowledge the ongoing repression in Berlin and Germany and Germany’s substantial involvement in the ongoing ‘plausible genocide’ (ICJ), by publicly displaying in the physical exhibition space and in all online and published media in relation to the exhibition, the text below from STRIKE GERMANY and ‘Archive of Silence’.
All the requests are in the context of the exhibition titled, ‘Changing States’, that seeks to be ‘politically engaged’, and as artists from Ireland, knowing how the island suffered the direct experience and devastating impact of settler-colonialism.
One hundred years ago, the British Government stated that their goal was for ‘Palestine to become a ‘Second Ireland’.
STRIKE GERMANY
‘STRIKE GERMANY is a call for international cultural workers to strike from German cultural institutions. It is a call to refuse German cultural institutions’ use of McCarthyist policies that suppress freedom of expression, specifically expressions of solidarity with Palestine.
STRIKE GERMANY withholds labour and presence from German cultural institutions. Until the demands below are met, participation will be withdrawn from festivals, panels, and exhibitions.
STRIKE GERMANY upholds a commitment to liberationist struggle and against Germany’s embargo on internationalist solidarity.
Archive of Silence
Archive of Silence is a crowdsourced archive documenting silenced voices. Their mission is to chronicle the alarming waves of erasure and violence directed at Palestinian advocacy in Germany. There has been an uprise of bans, cancellations and censorship. Many, including Jewish people, have lost their jobs. Events have been canceled and people have been defamed. Archive of Silence refuses to accept this condition.
