The lobby of the Whitney Museum in New York became the site of a protest by arts and culture workers on Friday (May 23) following the institution’s recent cancellation of a pro-Palestine performance.
The protest, which was announced on Instagram by the group Writers Against the War on Gaza, began around 8 p.m. during the Whitney’s “Free Friday Night” event, which offers a pay-what you-wish admission between 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. From the mezzanine level, protestors quietly unfurled a Palestinian flag and a banner reading “Creativity Does Not Have to Rely on Death.” On the ground floor, activists distributed brochures with text printed in the Whitney’s house font that demanded “the removal of board members tied to genocide, militarism and apartheid,” as well as an end to “institutional artwashing, censorship, surveillance and policing of artists.”
Museum security briefly barred entry to the museum and its galleries. Meanwhile, activists formed a circle in the lobby and called out Whitney leadership for its cancellation of No Aesthetics Outside My Freedom: Mourning, Militancy, and Performance, a piece by artists Fadl Fakhouri, Noel Maghathe, and Fargo Tbakh, on May 12, two days before it was set to take place as part the programming for an exhibition organized by the Whitney’s Independent Study Program.
Since the cancellation of No Aesthetics, scrutiny has also been paid to the demotion of Gregg Bordowitz, an artist who formerly served as director of the ISP. According to Artnet News, Bordowitz was demoted in February, but it remains unclear why he was removed to director-at-large. He has publicly spoken out against the cancellation of the performance, calling it an “intrusion” by the Whitney.
The performance was described by those involved as an invitation to mourn the roughly 50,000 Palestinians killed in Gaza since October 7, 2023, and those who have suffered over the decades of Israeli occupation in Gaza and the West Bank. During the hour and half-long duration of No Aesthetics, performers were to interpret “scores” written by Natalie Diaz, Christina Sharpe, and Brandon Shimoda that conveyed the themes of grief, endurance, and defiance.
As confirmed to ARTnews by a Whitney spokesperson, the performance was canceled after museum leadership viewed a recording of the work’s initial presentation at the Poetry Project, where the piece was staged in collaboration with Jewish Currents. That iteration opened with an address made by one of the performers to attendees: “You may only remain in this audience if you love Palestinians wholly and completely, you may only remain if you love us while we are alive and when we are dead, when we are fighting for survival, dignity, land, return, real and sustainable life using any and all methods available to us.”
The address included the request that any attendees leave the room if they “believe in Israel in any incarnation.”
In a prior statement to ARTnews, the Whitney said that the work “valorized specific acts of violence and imagery of violence,” and that there was “no instance when we would find it acceptable to single out members of our community based on their belief system and ask them to leave an exhibition or performance.” Sara Nadal-Melsió, associate director of the ISP, said the introduction would not have been included in the version of the performance.
Last night, one demonstrator read the performance’s introduction before those assembled. The demonstration and its materials also called out Whitney board members Nancy Carrington Crown, Leonard A. Lauder, and Laurie M. Tisch, all powerful patrons of the arts in New York, for their various familial and financial ties to Israel. Banners brandished on Friday took particular aim at Crown, whose family is a major shareholder in General Dynamics, an arms manufacturer that has been a frequent subject of criticism from activists for its dealings with Israel.
The demonstration peacefully departed the museum lobby around 9 p.m. “This will not be the last time you see us,” an activist called out to the lobby before that. “Keep your eyes open because the community sees you.”
Spokespersons for the Whitney and the ISP did not respond to requests for comment on last night’s protest.
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