Zur heutigen Eröffnung der Nan Goldin Retrospektive in der Neuen Nationalgalerie
News vom 22.11.2024
Hermann Parzinger, Präsident der SPK, erklärt: „Ich empfinde die von Nan Goldin im Zuge der heutigen Eröffnung ihrer Retrospektive gemachten Äußerungen als unerträglich und durch ihre Einseitigkeit gefährlich verharmlosend. Ihre Aussagen widersprechen unser aller Grundhaltung in der Stiftung zutiefst. Wie ich schon vor einigen Tagen deutlich gemacht habe: Die Häuser der Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz sind Orte der Kunstfreiheit, der freien Meinungsäußerung und des respektvollen Diskurses. Deshalb bin ich entsetzt, dass der Direktor der Neuen Nationalgalerie bei seiner Gegenrede von einer Gruppe von Aktivisten niedergebrüllt wurde. Das ist nicht unser Verständnis von Dialog und gegenseitigem Respekt. Bestimmte Grundsätze sind für uns nicht verhandelbar: Das Existenzrecht Israels steht außer Frage. Der Überfall der Hamas vom 7. Oktober 2023 auf den jüdischen Staat war ein grausamer Akt des Terrors, der durch nichts zu rechtfertigen ist. Das gilt auch für die Verschleppung unschuldiger Menschen. Wenn Jüdinnen und Juden bedroht oder verfolgt werden, nur weil sie Jüdinnen und Juden sind, ist das nicht hinzunehmen.“
Erklärung der Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz zur Retrospektive von Nan Goldin in der Neuen Nationalgalerie vom 20.11.2024
Die heutige Eröffnung der Retrospektive von Nan Goldin in der Neuen Nationalgalerie wurde kurzzeitig unterbrochen. Nach der Rede der Künstlerin, die ihre Position zum Nahostkonflikt deutlich machte, sprach der Direktor des Hauses Klaus Biesenbach, der seine und die Haltung des Hauses sowie der Stiftung darstellte. Er wurde von Sprechchören gestört, die unter anderem „Viva, viva Palestina“ und ähnliche Parolen skandierten. Ein Teil des Publikums verließ die Neue Nationalgalerie. Gegen 20:40 Uhr konnte die Veranstaltung fortgesetzt werden und Klaus Biesenbach erklärte vor den verbliebenen Gästen erneut Folgendes (es gilt das gesprochene Wort):
“As I mentioned in my introduction earlier I disagree with your opinion. Still I stand for your right to express yourself freely.
The primary mission of the Neue Nationalgalerie is to share extraordinary and important art with the public. We as the Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin consider it our responsibility and role to offer space for debate for urgent issues that are often left unspoken.
Our work is grounded in essential values that are non-negationable. Israel's right to exist is beyond question for us. The Hamas attack on the Jewish state on October 7, 2023 was a cruel act of terror that cannot be justified by anything. This also applies to the abduction of innocent people. We insist on the release of the remaining hostages! When Jews are threatened or persecuted simply because they are Jewish we show our solidarity!
At the same time, we empathize with civilians in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon, whose suffering cannot be overlooked. All people in the Middle East have the right to live without fear and with the assurance of their safety. We advocate for a peaceful solution to the Middle East conflict.
As a museum we are deeply committed to the freedom of art and freedom of expression even in cases where we disagree with that opinion. Equally important is our commitment to the dignity of every human individual, which requires a strong opposition to any kind of antisemitism, islamophobia, racism, and all other forms of hatred, bigotry and violence.
We do have a unique historical responsibility here in Berlin and in Germany.
We do believe that these commitments go hand in hand and need to apply equally to everyone. This is why we reject the logic of cultural boycott as is the case in the campaign of BDS.
We will not allow calls for or incitement to violence, the legitimization or trivialization of acts of terrorism, the injury and killing of civilians or support of terrorist organizations.
Neue Nationalgalerie is a space in which freedom of expression and respectful exchange are possible. We are grateful that art and art spaces can still allow diverging perspectives to coexist in a complex and increasingly polarized world.
Thank you for being here tonight.
Biographical Statement
In 1986 at the age of 19 I joined a program called „Atonement“, in German „Aktion Sühnezeichen“.
Being part of this program I moved to a Kibbuz in Israel and started working there. I turned 20 in Israel.
In 1992 one of my very first exhibitions I ever curated myself was with Nan Goldin in the exhibition "separate worlds" where I presented many photographs from Nan Goldins "ballad of sexual dependency" in KW in Berlin.
At the time, inmidst of discrimination and the AIDS pandemic, a very challenging, boundary pushing exhibiton.
Since then for 32 years of my career I can attest to Nan Goldin's uniquely influential body of work that changed how we all see the world and that influenced generations of artists and will do so in the future.
Nan Goldin has put together one of the most groundbreaking bodies of work of contemporary art.
She found a new and unique form of artistic expression brought together in this exhibition shown here in Neue Nationalgalerie. I feel deeply honored to present the work of this groundbreaking artist here tonight.
In 2022 I was invited by Nan and the Akademie der Künste to hold the laudatio for Nan being awarded the Käthe Kollwitz Preis. In the official statement why Nan was given the prize it said: Nan Goldin is forceful and incisive, frontal and full of melancholic tenderness
In 2004 I was privileged to be one of the caregivers of Susan Sontag. Susan battling terminal illness while we still worked together on an exhibition proposal based on her last book.
Regarding the Pain of Others.
Regarding the Pain of Others means empathy.
Through Empathy you can see the suffering in all human beings.
We could not complete our project then because of Susan's untimely passing. But she gave me something to hold on to in moments like this: be UNAFRAID. Unafraid does not simply mean courageous, it means to stand your ground in moments of fear and doubt.
Culture is two things: it means art but it also means civilization. Culture is the place in our society where we can debate and discuss - but not fight.
One of the principles of our democratic society is the freedom of speech and artistic freedom and I feel unafraid, grateful and privileged that this is exemplified by tonight.“
Schon in seinem Eingangsstatement zur Begrüßung hatte er deutlich gemacht:
„I am very grateful and excited to welcome Nan Goldin and Fredrik Liew tonight here to the museum for the opening of the important retrospective of Nan Goldin’s multi-decade career in Berlin curated for the international tour by Fredrik Liew.
We invited Nan nearly three years ago because we consider her to be one of the most important and influential artists of our time, and because her work and life has a strong connection to Berlin.
I am especially honored that Fredrik and Nan will speak tonight.
As you might have heard we decided to agree to disagree.
I treasure the freedom of expression here and now in Berlin 2024 to allow the Neue Nationalgalerie to be such place of dialogue.”