Kunstverein Braunschweig Cancels Exhibition by Johanna Hedva Over Hedva’s Use of the Term Genocide in a Press Release.

On February 29, 2024, Kunstverein Braunschweig canceled the solo exhibition Are You Willing to Break It by Los Angeles/Berlin based artist Johanna Hedva, which was scheduled to take place from March 16 to June 2, 2024. On March 15, Hedva stated in an Instagram post that the exhibition was canceled not because of “capacity reasons,” as stated on the Kunstverein’s website, but due to Hedva’s support for a free Palestine.
Hedva voiced that following the call to strike against German cultural institutions, they “chose to have a conversation with the curator [Benedikt Johannes Seerieder] and [the] director of the Kunstverein [Jule Hillgärtner].” In this conversation, Seerieder and Hillgärtener had assured Hedva that they would support Hedva being “explicitly pro-Palestine in the exhibition.” However, when Hedva used the phrase “ongoing genocide” in a draft of the press release that was shared internally, the director suggested to change the word “genocide” to “wars.”
After Hedva had consequently amended it to “undeniable genocide,” the institution “ghosted” them for two weeks, then informed them of the cancellation “via an unsigned email” sent from the Kunstverein’s general email account. According to Hedva, the director did not know about this email being sent.
Hedva noted that the curator did not have his contract renewed, and left “abruptly in the middle of production.” taz reported that Hillgärtner also stepped down as the director of the Kunstverein in March, though she was to be dismissed by the Association’s board by the end of October 20242. Neither of them made an official comment regarding the press release, but had informed Hedva that the “unofficial reason” for the cancellation of their exhibition was due to their use of the term “undeniable genocide.”