Hundreds of artists condemn the Royal Academy of Arts’ anti-Palestinian censorship
Palestine Watermelon Art Print – Heavy Manners Artivism
Artists for Palestine UK posted on 29 July 2024:
Royal Academicians Jock McFadyen, Rana Begum, Vanessa Jackson, Tim Shaw, David Nash, Helen Sear, David Mach and Goshka Macuga are among hundreds of arts professionals condemning the Royal Academy of Arts’ anti-Palestinian censorship after it removed two artworks from its Young Artists’ Summer Show.
In an open letter published today by Artists for Palestine UK, the signatories, including more than 100 Jewish creatives, decry as “shameful” the Royal Academy’s removal of a photograph of a protestor holding a placard that reads, “Jews Say Stop Genocide on Palestinians. Not In Our Name”.
Visual artists Nan Goldin, Rosalind Nashashibi, Adam Broomberg, curator David Campany, and writers Natasha Walter, Kamila Shamsie, Sabrina Mahfouz, Fatima Bhutto and Gillian Slovo are among those saying that The Royal Academy has “stigmatis[ed] the work of the young artists” and has “colluded with the erasure of Jewish contribution to solidarity with Palestinians.”
Visual artists Nan Goldin, Rosalind Nashashibi, Adam Broomberg, curator David Campany, and writers Natasha Walter, Kamila Shamsie, Sabrina Mahfouz, Fatima Bhutto and Gillian Slovo are among those saying that The Royal Academy has “stigmatis[ed] the work of the young artists” and has “colluded with the erasure of Jewish contribution to solidarity with Palestinians.”
The 750+ artists and public figures, including fashion designer Bella Freud, directors Mike Leigh, Peter Kosminsky, Asif Kapadia and Farah Nabulsi, musicians Brian Eno, Ana Tijoux and Robert Wyatt, photographer Shahidul Alam and actors Juliet Stevenson, Alia Shawkat and Adam Bakri are joined by several Jewish organisations including the Jewish Socialists’ Group. They add:
“Far from protecting Jews, the RA is lending support to a racist, anti-Palestinian campaign that aims to silence expressions of support for Palestinian people.”
More including the Open Letter ….