Royal Academy apologises for ‘hurt and distress’ over artworks inspired by Gaza
It comes after the Board of British Deputies of Jews wrote to the gallery to complain about three pieces in its Young Artists’ Summer Show.
The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) has apologised for “any hurt and distress” caused by “highly politically charged and controversial” artworks inspired by Gaza.
A painting which features a screaming woman with a Swastika overhead, by a 16-year-old called Andy, is one of three pieces mentioned in a complaint letter from the Board of Deputies of British Jews.
In a piece now removed from the RA’s website, the artist said he “created this piece of work inspired by the recent conflict in Gaza”, and added that he felt the conflict “draws many parallels with the Nazis’ oppression”.
Two other artworks inspired by the conflict between Israel and Hamas were also described as “causing significant concern to members of our community” by the board.
One was a piece entitled The Mass Slaughter Of Defenceless Women And Children Is Not How You Deradicalise Gaza, and featured a plane with the Star of David on it in front of bodies in burial shrouds, by RA member Michael Sandle, 88.
The other showed a person standing behind a sign that reads “Jews say stop genocide on Palestinians not in our name”, by an 18-year-old named Kausar
The board said the work “appears to be a submission from someone non-Jewish”.
Two of the pieces were displayed in the sixth annual Young Artists’ Summer Show, while Sandle’s features in the RA’s main summer exhibition as portrait number 425.
The letter from the Board of Deputies of British Jews said: “We would question the judgement of allowing these pictures with their highly politically charged and controversial messages into the RA’s summer exhibitions, particularly with no attempt to present any context or contextualising works which might express a contrary view.
“It risks giving the impression that the RA is taking a political stance on a very controversial issue, which would seem at odds with its objectives, not to mention its charitable status.
“We as an organisation are aware of the long and admirable tradition of anti-war art.
“However, while we are sure this was not the intention of the artists themselves, some imagery and content relating to works mentioned above comprise antisemitic tropes and messaging as defined by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism.”
The RA said that after “thorough” discussions with the help of “external guidance”, it had decided to remove two of the works, by Andy and Kausar, from display, and apologised for any offence caused.
A statement said: “As an organisation committed to freedom of expression, works in the exhibition often reflect current societal and political topics that matter to young people, from women’s rights to global conflict.
“We are aware of concerns about two artworks that relate to the Israel/Palestine conflict. We have discussed the matter thoroughly and have also received external guidance.
“We recognise that an exhibition for young people and artwork by young people is not an appropriate environment for volatile public discourse.
“We offer a duty of care to the artists we exhibit and the visitors to our galleries, particularly our youngest and most vulnerable. We chose to include these works in the show.
“However, having reviewed and considered the matter carefully, we feel that by continuing to display these artworks, with limited opportunity to provide context or discourse, we would risk causing undue upset and could put people at risk.
“We have therefore made the decision to remove these two artworks from display.
“We apologise for any hurt and distress this has caused to our young artists and to our visitors.
“We will learn from this experience and we are reviewing our processes, so we can continue to celebrate the creativity of young artists in a safe and responsible way.”
The RA told the PA news agency it would not be removing Sandle’s piece.
A statement issued to PA read: “Works in the exhibition often reflect current societal and political topics.
“Inclusion of works in the summer exhibition should not be read as the RA supporting any particular artist’s point of view.
“The Royal Academy is an organisation led by artists and architects and is committed to freedom of expression.”
