Iraqi Artists Withdraw From Berlin Biennale

August 18, 2022 • View in browser

Good morning. 🌤️ The curators of the Berlin Biennale may have thought they were safe from controversy, especially compared to all the problems of Documenta 15 in Kassel. That changed yesterday when three Iraqi artists withdrew their work from the exhibition to protest the inclusion of French artist Jean-Jacques Lebel's blown-up torture images from Abu Ghraib. When will some artists — mostly male — understand that their "confrontational" work is nothing but cheap sensationalism that can reactivate trauma for others?

Also today: A study finds that 90% of medieval manuscripts have been lost (including many juicy stories about King Arthur), the queer histories of labor movements, Nancy Princenthal's review of Joan Semmel’s retrospective Skin in the Game, and much more.

— Hakim Bishara, Senior Editor

The Painter Who Directed Her Resolute Gaze at Herself

The emphasis in Joan Semmel's retrospective Skin in the Game is on the various points of view she has taken on herself — and, briefly, on others too. | Nancy Princenthal

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One of the venues of the 12th Berlin Beinalle, featuring Sajjad Abbas’ “I Can See You” (2013) (photo by dotgain.info, courtesy the Berlin Biennale)

Three Iraqi artists withdraw from the Berlin Biennale in response to the inclusion of an installation depicting torture committed at Abu Ghraib.

Museums across New York are now required to very visibly label Nazi-looted art under a new law.

A new study suggests that over 90% of medieval European manuscripts have vanished through history.

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Celebrate the Art and Science of Edible Plants at Around the Table: Stories of the Foods We Love

New York Botanical Garden’s latest exhibition focuses on how food choices impact our world and features special picnic tables designed by Bronx artists. Learn more.

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As bodily autonomy and workers’ rights remain under constant and often intertwined threat, The Work of Love, the Queer of Labor reminds us of what is still at stake. | Billy Anania

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IN MEMORIAM

Paul Coker (1929–2022)
American illustrator | New York Times

Lucien Kroll (1927–2022)
Belgian architect | Dezeen

Natalia LL (1937–2022)
Polish Conceptual artist | Artnews

Jean-Jacques Sempé (1932–2022)
French illustrator and cartoonist | New York Times

Dmitry Vrubel (1960–2022)
Russian painter and graffiti artist | Art Newspaper

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