On November 23, 2024, Berlin was the ground zero of an international controversy when famed photographer and activist Nan Goldin opened her long-awaited retrospective exhibition, This Will Not End Well, at the Neue Nationalgalerie. The event, which was due to lavish praise on Goldin’s transformative value to both art and activism, instead captured worldwide attention for her firebrand speech protesting Israel’s military campaign against Gaza and Lebanon. Associated Press
Goldin, who is Jewish and known as a fervent activist, called the actions taken by Israel “genocide,” a word that was met with instant division among audiences. Her remarks also criticised Germany’s treatment of the ongoing conflict, which she said includes the suppression of pro-Palestinian protests. “Art does not exist in a vacuum,” Goldin said, adding that the audience members should also think about what part cultural institutions and individuals “can play in stopping the worst systems, the most unfair systems of injustice, from rolling on.” Associated Press
The backlash was swift. While some commended her for using her platform to draw attention to pressing geopolitical issues, others decried her response as inflammatory and divisive. Meanwhile, critics said Goldin was politicising the art space, and some said her statements during the exhibition launch were inappropriate. But Goldin’s supporters underscored the urgency and importance of artists speaking truth to power, especially at politically charged moments.Associated Press
The Neue Nationalgalerie has not yet released an official statement on the controversy. But Goldin’s comments have already kicked off a wider debate in the German art world and beyond over the intersections of art, activism and free speech.
The exhibition itself, This Will Not End Well, is a comprehensive overview of Goldin’s work, which is known for its frank representations of intimacy, addiction and marginalised communities. Though the artwork on view merits its own importance, the speech she delivered on opening night became the event’s defining moment, sparking a conversation that overshadowed talks of her artistic legacy. Nan Goldin’s voice, as an artist and activist, on this matter and others continue to enlist conventions and to catalyse a vital but risky discussion dialogue. SMB Museum
Feature Image: Nan Goldin seated and gesturing during a press interaction at the Neue Nationalgalerie, surrounded by reporters holding recording devices and microphones.| Courtesy: Fabian Sommer/dpa/picture alliance
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