After the allegations of anti-Semitism against the “documenta fifteen” in Kassel, the heavily criticized banner of the Indonesian artist collective Taring Padi was taken down. At first it was draped with a black cloth. Among other things, a soldier with a pig’s face can be seen on the large banner. He wears a scarf with a Star of David and a helmet with the inscription “Mossad” – the name of the Israeli foreign intelligence service.
The artist collective Taring Padi has meanwhile apologized “for the injuries caused in this connection”. The imagery criticized uses symbolism that is widespread in Indonesia’s political context. The installation is “part of a campaign against militarism and the violence we witnessed during the 32-year Suharto military dictatorship in Indonesia and its legacy, which continues to have an impact today,” Taring Padi said. The depictions on the banner are an expression of these experiences: “All the figures depicted on the banner refer to a symbolism that is widespread in Indonesia’s political context, for example for the corrupt administration, the military generals and their soldiers, which are symbolized as a pig, dog and rat to criticize an exploitative capitalist system and military violence.” Furthermore: “Our works do not contain content that aims to portray any population groups in a negative way. The characters, signs, caricatures and other visual vocabulary in the works are culture-specifically related to our own experiences.”
The International Auschwitz Committee called for dialogue with the artists. “It’s high time to start a conversation at this documenta, to hear the artists from which world view these pictures were created and to explain publicly on the part of the documenta why these pictures are met with resistance and rejection here,” said Vice President Christoph heubner.
He accused those involved of having shown an “inability to talk” during the preparation of the show, which “has led to a totally muddled and undignified situation” that “tragically will produce nothing other than new anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli clichés in the heads of many people: The Jews as eternal troublemakers and bullies”.
Source: Nachrichten
