A significant number of New York art galleries, including major players like Pace Gallery, David Zwirner, and Marian Goodman, will close on January 30 to join a nationwide general strike protesting expanded Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations. The strike is a response to allegations of federal overreach, including the use of deadly force against protestors and the detention of Native Americans, which have fueled widespread outrage.
Seventy-three artists and curators participating in the main exhibition of the 2024 Venice Biennale have issued an open letter objecting to the organizers' decision to relocate the Israeli national pavilion to the Arsenale. They argue this move creates an intimidating atmosphere contrary to the late curator Koyo Kouoh's vision of "radical solidarity" and will necessitate a heightened security presence. The signatories, which include key curators tasked with realizing Kouoh's exhibition, also call for the exclusion of Israel, Russia, and the United States from the event, citing their governments' alleged commission of war crimes.
The Venice Biennale is facing intense international backlash following its decision to allow Russia to return for the 2026 edition after a hiatus caused by the invasion of Ukraine. High-ranking politicians from 22 European nations, along with thousands of artists and curators, have signed open letters condemning the move as a platform for state-directed cultural diplomacy and war-crime whitewashing. The Biennale has defended its stance by claiming a policy of non-censorship, asserting that it accepts any nation recognized by the Italian government.
Manuel Segade, director of the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía in Spain, has been threatened with removal by lawmakers if he does not complete a full inventory of the museum’s over 25,000 artworks by December 31, 2025. The pressure comes from Spain’s Court of Auditors, which has criticized the museum’s cataloguing methods for years, and is backed by the far-right and the conservative Popular Party. Segade, appointed in 2023, has been overseeing a multi-year renovation and has increased the representation of women artists to 35%, though only 15% of the collection’s 26,000 pieces are by women. The museum recently refused to lend Picasso’s *Guernica* to the Guggenheim Bilbao, and a pro-Israel group filed a complaint over a Palestinian flag display and a seminar series.
A group of seventy-four artists and curators participating in the 61st Venice Biennale have issued an urgent letter to the institution's leadership, including director Pietrangelo Buttafuoco. The signatories are protesting the decision to relocate the Israeli Pavilion to the Arsenale, placing it in close proximity to the central exhibition, "In Minor Keys," which was conceived by the late curator Koyo Kouoh. The group argues that this relocation violates Kouoh’s curatorial vision of radical solidarity and introduces a threatening military and police presence into the exhibition space.
A group of 74 artists and curators invited to the 61st Venice Biennale have issued an open letter to the institution's president, Pietrangelo Buttafuoco. The signatories are protesting the decision to relocate the Israeli Pavilion to the Arsenale, placing it in close proximity to the central exhibition 'In Minor Keys' curated by the late Koyo Kouoh. The letter demands the exclusion of official delegations from countries accused of war crimes—specifically Israel, Russia, and the United States—and accuses the Biennale of complicity through its silence on global atrocities.
The Walker Art Center in Minneapolis is navigating the civic distress caused by 'Operation Metro Surge,' a federal immigration enforcement initiative that has disrupted the lives of local artists, staff, and residents. In response to the atmosphere of fear and the shift to virtual schooling, the museum has positioned itself as a sanctuary, offering art-making kits, indigenous-led workshops, and public screenings to foster community resilience.
More than 100 Cuban artists, curators, and cultural workers, including the nation's Culture Minister and prominent intellectuals, have issued an open letter titled "Cuba is Not a Threat" appealing for international intervention. They argue the US economic embargo, particularly restrictions on oil and fuel shipments, has crippled the island's infrastructure and exacerbated a severe humanitarian crisis, making stabilization efforts impossible.
An art exhibition at the Bangkok Arts and Cultural Centre titled “Constellation of Complicity: Visualising the Global Machine of Authoritarian Solidarity” was censored after repeated visits by Chinese embassy representatives. The show, featuring exiled artists from China, Russia, Iran, and Burma, had black paint applied over artists' names and descriptions of homelands such as Tibet, Hong Kong, and Xinjiang. Works by Tibetan artist Tenzin Mingyur Paldron were particularly affected, with television screens showing her films switched off and Tibetan and Uyghur flags removed. Burmese artist Sai told BBC News that since the censorship, he and his wife fled to the UK to seek asylum.
The Bangkok Art and Culture Center (BACC) censored an exhibition titled 'Constellation of Complicity: Visualising the Global Machinery of Authoritarian Solidarity' after pressure from the Chinese Embassy in Thailand. Works by artists from Hong Kong, Tibet, and the Uyghur diaspora were blacked out or removed to avoid 'diplomatic tensions between Thailand and China.' The curators fled the country after Chinese officials and Thai police visited the museum. Affected artists include Doc Tenzin, Mukaddas Mijit, Clara Cheung, and Gun Cheng Yee Man, whose names were blacked out, along with Tibetan and Uyghur flags and a graphic comparing China to Israel.
Pepperdine University in Malibu, California, closed the exhibition “Hold My Hand In Yours” at the Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art on October 6, after artists discovered their works had been removed or altered for being “overtly political.” The show, curated by museum director Andrea Gyorody, explored the imagery of hands in relation to labor and care. One artist found her video turned off at the university’s request, and a sculpture was modified to hide text reading “Save the Children” and “Abolish ICE.” The affected artists requested their pieces be removed, and others withdrew in solidarity. University officials cited a policy to avoid overtly political content consistent with its nonprofit status, and offered apologies while honoring compensation agreements.
Following the UK Supreme Court's 16 April ruling that the terms "woman" and "sex" in the Equality Act refer only to biological sex, UK museums are publicly reaffirming their support for transgender communities. The Museum of Transology, which houses the world's largest collection of trans, non-binary, and intersex artefacts, had recently marked its tenth anniversary with the exhibition Transcestry at Central Saint Martins' Lethaby Gallery. Smaller institutions like London's Vagina Museum quickly posted statements of solidarity, while larger bodies such as Arts Council England await a revised code of practice from the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
The Bangkok Art and Culture Centre (BACC) censored an exhibition titled 'Constellation of Complicity: Visualising the Global Machinery of Authoritarian Solidarity' after pressure from the Chinese embassy. The exhibition, which opened on July 24, featured works by exiled artists from Myanmar, Iran, Russia, and Syria exploring authoritarian alliances. Following a visit by Chinese embassy staff, several works were removed, including a multimedia installation by a Tibetan artist, and texts mentioning 'Hong Kong', 'Tibet', and 'Uyghur' were redacted. The curator, Sai, a Myanmar artist in exile, said the interference was not unexpected.
Graduate students in the University of North Texas's MFA Studio Art program are withdrawing their upcoming thesis exhibitions in protest. Their action is a direct response to the unexplained cancellation of artist Victor "Marka27" Quiñonez's solo show, "Ni de Aquí, Ni de Allá," which addressed Mexican-American identity and violence by ICE. The school papered over the gallery windows and removed the exhibition page without providing a public rationale to the artist or the community.