The Defining Art Events of 2023

Documenta Finds Itself in Controversy (Again)

Documenta, a roving art exhibition in Germany, and one of the most prestigious events of its kind in Europe, is in trouble. It has been, for some time: last year, Documenta 15 was roiled by allegations of antisemitism after a mural depicting a Jewish caricature made it to opening day; the debacle was exacerbated by the circulation of misinformation about a Palestinian collective in prominent German news outlets. In Germany, most art is dependent on federal funding—which trickles down to the state and municipal levels—and Documenta was warned that its future was dependent on reforms, even as some called for greater government control of the whole operation. In February 2023, the event released a report conducted by a scientific committee that accused the curators and select artists of exhibiting anti-Israel bias.

“I doubt Documenta will command the respect and the pre-eminence it did before this year, though, and it’ll never recover its aim of imagining the whole world in one show,” New York Times critic Jason Farago wrote in September 2022.

Those words may be prophetic. In November, the six-member selection committee charged with finding an artistic director for the 2027 edition Documenta resigned, as the organization again grapples with allegations of antisemitism.

The 2023 controversy began after Documenta released a new statement about Ruangrupa, the Indonesian collective that organized last year’s edition, decrying two of its members for liking, then un-liking, social media posts in support of Palestine. It is highly unusual for a biennial to speak out against past or present curators, and moreover, Ruangrupa is not involved with organizing the forthcoming edition. The statement was written by Documenta managing director Andreas Hoffmann, who said the content of the posts was “intolerable and unacceptable.”

A month later, Documenta was again in headlines after its organizers denounced Ranjit Hoskote, a member of the selection committee for its 2027 exhibition. Hoskote, an Indian poet and critic, had been called out in a report in Suddeutsche Zeitung for signing a letter protesting Zionism and Hindu nationalism, an ideology known as Hindutva, in 2019. The letter was published by the Indian division of Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions, a group that advocates for Palestinian rights. In Germany, BDS is a political flashpoint, with some even seeking to criminalize its support. In a response to the Suddeutsche Zeitung article, German culture minister Claudia Roth said the letter Hoskote signed was “clearly anti-Semitic and full of anti-Israel conspiracy theories.” She threatened to again pull funding from Documenta.

Shortly after, Hoskote quit the committee. In his resignation letter, published on e-flux, Hoskote wrote: “It is clear to me that there is no room, in this toxic atmosphere, for a nuanced discussion of the issues at stake.” That same day, Israeli artist Bracha L. Ettinger resigned from the committee due to, what she called, “dark times” in her home country.

The remaining members of the selection committee— Simon Njami, Gong Yan, Kathrin Rhomberg, and María Inés Rodríguez—later resigned. “In the current circumstances we do not believe that there is a space in Germany for an open exchange of ideas and the development of complex and nuanced artistic approaches that documenta artists and curators deserve,” the curators wrote in their resignation letter, which was published by e-flux. 

In a statement, Documenta said it had considered putting the process of selecting an artistic director on hold altogether “due to the special world situation following the Hamas terrorist attack in Israel.” —Tessa Solomon