Seven artists—Tania Bruguera, Dora Garcia, Phil Collins, Siniša Mitrović, Alessandra Saviotti, and Gemma Medina—have withdrawn their work from the exhibition “1+1: The Relational Years” at MAXXI in Rome, scheduled to open this week.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.
The withdrawal marks a significant escalation in the cultural boycott movement targeting Italian institutions over Israel's actions in Gaza, following a broader boycott launched in April 2024 against MAXXI, Miart, and Palazzo delle Esposizioni. It highlights the growing pressure on museums to sever ties with corporate sponsors perceived as complicit in human rights abuses, and raises questions about the limits of institutional neutrality in the art world. The incident also underscores the tension between the legacy of relational aesthetics—a movement that emphasizes participation and social engagement—and the political realities that artists now demand their work address.