American photographer Nan Goldin condemns war in Gaza at Berlin exhibition opening

American photographer and activist Nan Goldin used the opening of her exhibition in Berlin to deliver a powerful condemnation of Israel’s assault on Gaza. 

Speaking at the Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin on Friday, the 71-year-old artist described her retrospective show “This Will Not End Well” as a platform to express her "moral outrage" over what she described as "genocide in Gaza and Lebanon".

Her comments came a day after the International Criminal Court in The Hague issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, accusing them of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Goldin, who is of Jewish descent, recalled her family’s history, saying: “My grandparents escaped pogroms in Russia. I was brought up knowing about the Nazi Holocaust. What I see in Gaza reminds me of the pogroms that my grandparents escaped.”

During her speech, she emphasised the importance of distinguishing between criticism of Israel and antisemitism, warning against the conflation of the terms. She also addressed the treatment of artists and others who have voiced strong criticism of Israel, noting how some have had their exhibitions cancelled in Germany or faced other repercussions.

"Never again means never again for everyone," Goldin added, referencing the vow to prevent genocides like the Holocaust from happening again, and accusing Germany of Islamophobia. "What have you learned, Germany?" the artist asked.

 “Germany is home of the largest Palestinian diaspora in Europe. Yet protests are met with police dogs and deportation and stigmatisation,” she said.

Goldin walked off the stage to loud chants of "free, free Palestine," which overwhelmed a subsequent speech by Klaus Biesenbach, the director of the Neue Nationalgalerie.

Hermann Parzinger, president of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation, of which the gallery is part, strongly condemned both Goldin's remarks and the disruption of Biesenbach's speech.

“This does not correspond to our understanding of freedom of expression,” he said. 

While Biesenbach disagreed with Goldin's views, he expressed support for her right to speak freely.

In a statement following the opening, quoted by the German news agency dpa, he emphasised that the gallery distanced itself from the protesters’ position, but reaffirmed its commitment to "freedom of expression and respectful dialogue and interaction".

German Culture Minister Claudia Roth called Goldin’s views "unbearably one-sided" and said she was "appalled" at the way people in the audience chanted slogans like "Free Palestine."

The Neue Nationalgalerie’s lifetime retrospective of Nan Goldin offers a thorough exploration of her work, featuring a blend of slideshows and films accompanied by music.

Born in Washington D.C., Goldin is renowned not only for her photography but also for her activism. Her life and work were documented in the acclaimed 2022 film All the Beauty and the Bloodshed, which won the Golden Lion in Venice and which we described in our review as "moving, enthralling, enraging and an utterly essential watch."