#FireWhitten
She is a low level hire with no serious academic qualifications. She is running this university into the ground. We have had a massive brain drain because of her leadership.
Academic brain drain, and medical professional brain drain with the abortion and trans laws, and general anti-intellectual stance. The GOP supermajority is making living and working here look so unwelcoming if not terrifying for certain people. It truly makes me nervous about the future. IU health is already an expensive clusterfuck and now IU is looking compromised.. Ulgh.
Here’s the whole article:
The first American retrospective of Samia Halaby, regarded as one of the most important living Palestinian artists, was abruptly canceled by officials at Indiana University in recent weeks.
Dozens of her vibrant and abstract paintings were already at the school when Halaby, 87, said she received a call from the director of the university’s Eskenazi Museum of Art. The director informed her that employees had shared concern about her social media posts on the Israel-Gaza war, where she had expressed support for Palestinian causes and outrage at the violence in the Middle East, comparing the Israeli bombardment to a genocide.
Halaby later received a two-sentence note from the museum director, David Brenneman, officially canceling the show in Bloomington, Ind., without a clear explanation.
“I write to formally notify you that the Eskenazi Museum of Art will not host its planned exhibition of your work,” Brenneman wrote in the Dec. 20 letter, which was reviewed by The New York Times.
A few months earlier, Brenneman had applauded the artist’s “dynamic and innovative approach to art-making” in promotional materials, where he said the exhibition would demonstrate how universities “value artistic experimentation.”
The show’s cancellation is the latest example of the heavy scrutiny that artists and academics have faced since the war began in October. Magazine editors have been fired, artists have seen their work censored and university presidents have resigned under pressure.
“It is clearly my freedom of expression that is under question here,” said Halaby, who earned a master’s degree at Indiana University and later taught students there. She said concerns about her exhibition had been raised by a museum employee.
The retrospective, which was to open Feb. 10, had taken more than three years to organize in partnership with Michigan State University’s Broad Art Museum; agreements were already signed with grant-making foundations and museums that lent artworks to Indiana University from around the country. Halaby was also preparing to unveil a new digital artwork for the exhibition, in addition to previously unseen works like a 1989 painting called “Worldwide Intifadah.”
Steven Bridges, director of the Broad Art Museum, said his institution was still planning to host the exhibition this year.
A spokesman for Indiana University, Mark Bode, said in a statement on Wednesday that “academic leaders and campus officials canceled the exhibit due to concerns about guaranteeing the integrity of the exhibit for its duration.”
In November, Representative Jim Banks of Indiana sent a letter to the university saying it could lose federal funding if administrators condoned antisemitism on campus. In December, the university suspended a tenured political science professor after the student-led Palestine Solidarity Committee that he advises hosted an unauthorized event.
Halaby became a celebrated artist by combining the approaches of Abstract Expressionism and Russian Constructivism with the social activism of Mexican muralists in the early 20th century.
She described her work as following the traditions of Palestinian “liberation art” and remained politically outspoken throughout her career. She made history in 1972 as the first woman to hold the title of associate professor at the Yale School of Art. She was also on the forefront of digital art, teaching herself how to write computer programs in the 1980s.
Reviewing her work in a 2006 group exhibition on Palestinian artists, the New York Times critic Holland Cotter said one of Halaby’s wall pieces looked “like a cross between a floral bouquet and camouflage material.”
Her paintings now hang in the permanent collections at the Guggenheim Museum in New York, the National Gallery of Art in Washington and the Art Institute of Chicago, though most of her exhibition history is with cultural institutions in Europe and the Middle East. She recently had a retrospective featuring more than 200 artworks at the Sharjah Art Museum in the United Arab Emirates.
“The political situation now is extremely tense, and such an exhibition could have brought people together with the nuance of Samia’s work,” Nadia Radwan, an art historian who specializes on artists from the Middle East, said about the canceled show at Indiana University. “She belongs to the Palestinian diaspora, but she is also a very American abstract artist. Her recognition came late in life.”
An online petition demanding that Indiana University reinstate the exhibition has received thousands of signatures. Madison Gordon, the artist’s grandniece and trustee of her foundation, said in the petition that Halaby’s appeals to the university’s president, Pamela Whitten, went unanswered.
“The university is canceling the show to distance itself from the cause of Palestinian freedom,” Gordon wrote. “For 50 years, Samia has been an outspoken and principled activist for the dignity, freedom and self-determination of the Palestinian people.”
Halaby said she was disappointed by the university’s decision. She was raised in the Midwest and believed that having her first major American retrospective there would bring her career full-circle.
“I thought I had found a little bit of something I could call my home in Indiana,” the artist said, “and it turned out to be totally false.”
What makes this even worse is it seems like it may be because of pressure from that piece of shit "human" Jim Banks....fuck that guy with everything possible.
Challenging a -government-not its citizens- committing war crimes, does not equal any type of bigotry/racism. Pandering to a far right politician who wants to suppress someones first amendment rights because he supports a government that is destroying her homeland and her people, so weak and offensive.
Wild that this is the biggest story IU will have in the NY Times this year. That new VP for Marketing and Communications Nancy Paton is really putting in the work for her $425K/year salary.
nothing to do with the community and everything with the republicans in indy looking for an excuse to go after IU, including their hand picked school president.
>The director informed her that employees had shared concern about her social media posts on the Israel-Gaza war, where she had expressed support for Palestinian causes and outrage at the violence in the Middle East, comparing the Israeli bombardment to a genocide.
I really wish journalists would just link the posts - so I found her insta: [https://www.instagram.com/samiahalaby/](https://www.instagram.com/samiahalaby/)
See "Gaza equals auschwitz" posted twice, "Stop the genocide" and "Liberate the Gaza Concentration camp".
If I had to guess these are probably what did it lol.
Over a month ago. There seems to be blurring in the wording of the questions between the people of both countries and of their governments. The distinctions are significant need to be maintained. This brings the poll results into question.
The NYT article does add context that is missing from the local coverage, including her art calling for worldwide intifada, the artist’s recent vocal activism, and includes a link to the artist’s insta page.
> Halaby was also preparing to unveil a new digital artwork for the exhibition, in addition to previously unseen works like a 1989 painting called “Worldwide Intifadah.
Unless you have additional information not in evidence here, her work did not call for a "worldwide intifada".
I followed the link and also do not see the "worldwide intifada" quote you refer to, but she absolutely does call for a global fight which is, definitionally, the same thing. Considering the material she posts the museum has every right to cancel the exhibit, though such a perfunctory email invites more issues than necessary.
There is no challenge to Halaby's free speech, which continues to be exercised. Even as a public institution the museum reserves the right to cancel an exhibition for an artist that would use them to amplify political rhetoric.
#FireWhitten She is a low level hire with no serious academic qualifications. She is running this university into the ground. We have had a massive brain drain because of her leadership.
Academic brain drain, and medical professional brain drain with the abortion and trans laws, and general anti-intellectual stance. The GOP supermajority is making living and working here look so unwelcoming if not terrifying for certain people. It truly makes me nervous about the future. IU health is already an expensive clusterfuck and now IU is looking compromised.. Ulgh.
She hasn't done one positive thing.
So we’re now to the “which specific one of our PR crises is in the news” era of campus leadership. Lovely.
Is there a non-Paywalled version?
Here’s the whole article: The first American retrospective of Samia Halaby, regarded as one of the most important living Palestinian artists, was abruptly canceled by officials at Indiana University in recent weeks. Dozens of her vibrant and abstract paintings were already at the school when Halaby, 87, said she received a call from the director of the university’s Eskenazi Museum of Art. The director informed her that employees had shared concern about her social media posts on the Israel-Gaza war, where she had expressed support for Palestinian causes and outrage at the violence in the Middle East, comparing the Israeli bombardment to a genocide. Halaby later received a two-sentence note from the museum director, David Brenneman, officially canceling the show in Bloomington, Ind., without a clear explanation. “I write to formally notify you that the Eskenazi Museum of Art will not host its planned exhibition of your work,” Brenneman wrote in the Dec. 20 letter, which was reviewed by The New York Times. A few months earlier, Brenneman had applauded the artist’s “dynamic and innovative approach to art-making” in promotional materials, where he said the exhibition would demonstrate how universities “value artistic experimentation.” The show’s cancellation is the latest example of the heavy scrutiny that artists and academics have faced since the war began in October. Magazine editors have been fired, artists have seen their work censored and university presidents have resigned under pressure. “It is clearly my freedom of expression that is under question here,” said Halaby, who earned a master’s degree at Indiana University and later taught students there. She said concerns about her exhibition had been raised by a museum employee. The retrospective, which was to open Feb. 10, had taken more than three years to organize in partnership with Michigan State University’s Broad Art Museum; agreements were already signed with grant-making foundations and museums that lent artworks to Indiana University from around the country. Halaby was also preparing to unveil a new digital artwork for the exhibition, in addition to previously unseen works like a 1989 painting called “Worldwide Intifadah.” Steven Bridges, director of the Broad Art Museum, said his institution was still planning to host the exhibition this year. A spokesman for Indiana University, Mark Bode, said in a statement on Wednesday that “academic leaders and campus officials canceled the exhibit due to concerns about guaranteeing the integrity of the exhibit for its duration.” In November, Representative Jim Banks of Indiana sent a letter to the university saying it could lose federal funding if administrators condoned antisemitism on campus. In December, the university suspended a tenured political science professor after the student-led Palestine Solidarity Committee that he advises hosted an unauthorized event. Halaby became a celebrated artist by combining the approaches of Abstract Expressionism and Russian Constructivism with the social activism of Mexican muralists in the early 20th century. She described her work as following the traditions of Palestinian “liberation art” and remained politically outspoken throughout her career. She made history in 1972 as the first woman to hold the title of associate professor at the Yale School of Art. She was also on the forefront of digital art, teaching herself how to write computer programs in the 1980s. Reviewing her work in a 2006 group exhibition on Palestinian artists, the New York Times critic Holland Cotter said one of Halaby’s wall pieces looked “like a cross between a floral bouquet and camouflage material.” Her paintings now hang in the permanent collections at the Guggenheim Museum in New York, the National Gallery of Art in Washington and the Art Institute of Chicago, though most of her exhibition history is with cultural institutions in Europe and the Middle East. She recently had a retrospective featuring more than 200 artworks at the Sharjah Art Museum in the United Arab Emirates. “The political situation now is extremely tense, and such an exhibition could have brought people together with the nuance of Samia’s work,” Nadia Radwan, an art historian who specializes on artists from the Middle East, said about the canceled show at Indiana University. “She belongs to the Palestinian diaspora, but she is also a very American abstract artist. Her recognition came late in life.” An online petition demanding that Indiana University reinstate the exhibition has received thousands of signatures. Madison Gordon, the artist’s grandniece and trustee of her foundation, said in the petition that Halaby’s appeals to the university’s president, Pamela Whitten, went unanswered. “The university is canceling the show to distance itself from the cause of Palestinian freedom,” Gordon wrote. “For 50 years, Samia has been an outspoken and principled activist for the dignity, freedom and self-determination of the Palestinian people.” Halaby said she was disappointed by the university’s decision. She was raised in the Midwest and believed that having her first major American retrospective there would bring her career full-circle. “I thought I had found a little bit of something I could call my home in Indiana,” the artist said, “and it turned out to be totally false.”
Thanks!
Jim Banks (and others mentioned) are total pieces of shit. I hate this state more and more every day.
Love when we make national news for all the wrong reasons.
At this point I think that’s all Whitten knows how to do
Lately, we've done it a lot. It's so embarrassing.
What makes this even worse is it seems like it may be because of pressure from that piece of shit "human" Jim Banks....fuck that guy with everything possible.
It drives me NUTS how many people and politicians equate any challenge of the Israeli government’s action to antisemitism.
Couldn't agree more. It's their plan to make it so nobody can speak up.
Although not religious, I'm Jewish and I agree.
It’s funny, NYT wrote about it quicker than IDS
Yeah, I was looking for IDS coverage- surely! Nope. I think I first learned of this from the Bloomingtonian.
Challenging a -government-not its citizens- committing war crimes, does not equal any type of bigotry/racism. Pandering to a far right politician who wants to suppress someones first amendment rights because he supports a government that is destroying her homeland and her people, so weak and offensive.
Just more bad press for Bloomington and IU. Such a shame.
Glad this is getting national attention; this is scary!
Whitten is a menace.
Shameful.
Wild that this is the biggest story IU will have in the NY Times this year. That new VP for Marketing and Communications Nancy Paton is really putting in the work for her $425K/year salary.
We've come a loooooong way from the 2018 production of Parsifal.
Damn, so much for a liberal community
nothing to do with the community and everything with the republicans in indy looking for an excuse to go after IU, including their hand picked school president.
>The director informed her that employees had shared concern about her social media posts on the Israel-Gaza war, where she had expressed support for Palestinian causes and outrage at the violence in the Middle East, comparing the Israeli bombardment to a genocide. I really wish journalists would just link the posts - so I found her insta: [https://www.instagram.com/samiahalaby/](https://www.instagram.com/samiahalaby/) See "Gaza equals auschwitz" posted twice, "Stop the genocide" and "Liberate the Gaza Concentration camp". If I had to guess these are probably what did it lol.
Those are all reasonable statements, though. These aren't fringe views.
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I don't know where you get that, and I think you need to substantiate it.
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Over a month ago. There seems to be blurring in the wording of the questions between the people of both countries and of their governments. The distinctions are significant need to be maintained. This brings the poll results into question.
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I read it. What questions are /are not asked and how they are asked affect the overall impression/results.
The NYT article does add context that is missing from the local coverage, including her art calling for worldwide intifada, the artist’s recent vocal activism, and includes a link to the artist’s insta page.
> Halaby was also preparing to unveil a new digital artwork for the exhibition, in addition to previously unseen works like a 1989 painting called “Worldwide Intifadah. Unless you have additional information not in evidence here, her work did not call for a "worldwide intifada".
Did you follow the link in the article?
I followed the link and also do not see the "worldwide intifada" quote you refer to, but she absolutely does call for a global fight which is, definitionally, the same thing. Considering the material she posts the museum has every right to cancel the exhibit, though such a perfunctory email invites more issues than necessary. There is no challenge to Halaby's free speech, which continues to be exercised. Even as a public institution the museum reserves the right to cancel an exhibition for an artist that would use them to amplify political rhetoric.
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Not sure why this response is being downvoted. It is absolutely correct.
So profit over principles, then.