artists withdraw relational aesthetics exhibition maxxi rome 1234759280
Seven artists—Tania Bruguera, Dora Garcia, Phil Collins, Siniša Mitrović, Alessandra Saviotti, and Gemma Medina—have withdrawn their work from the exhibition “1+1: The Relational Years” at MAXXI in Rome, scheduled to open this week. In an open letter published by Nero Editions, they accuse the museum of having “links to genocide in Palestine” through its acceptance of funding from and collaborations with Italian companies Eni and Leonardo s.p.a., which have ties to Israel's military and energy sectors. The exhibition, curated by Nicolas Bourriaud, surveys relational aesthetics and also includes works by Vanessa Beecroft, Maurizio Cattelan, Felix Gonzalez-Torres, Pierre Huyghe, and Rirkrit Tiravanija. Five anti-Zionist activist groups have added their own statement supporting the boycott.
