Protesters hold up signs and call out against the Supreme Court's ruling upholding President Donald Trump's travel ban outside the court in Washington, DC on Tuesday
AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster
On Tuesday (26 June), the US Supreme Court voted to uphold the executive order known as the travel ban, which bars travellers from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the US. The courts close 5-4 decision has potentially negative implications for cultural exchange in America for the artists, curators and patrons of the countries restricted by the ban. Christine Anagnos, the director of the Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD), which co-signed an amicus brief challenging the legality of the ban, says the courts decision raises “concerns that a number of programmes and events our member museums have in place—and, more importantly, are planning for the future—will be affected”.
The AAMD will “continue to advocate for visas to be provided to individuals who wish to present in the US”, says Anagnos, adding that “international collaborations are key to our ongoing work and this is a time where the world needs exchange that fosters more understanding”.
Pen America released a statement yesterday arguing that the courts decision is “a blow to cultural, intellectual and artistic discourse and a rejection of Americas commitment to open exchange”. In the letter, the chief executive officer Suzanne Nossel writes that the decision “affirms prejudice and erects boundaries, [and] sullies the United States reputation as a standard-bearer for the free and open exchange of ideas”.
On social media, artists like Richard Prince, Marilyn Minter and Raymond Pettibon posted comments and retweeted news posts on the day of the decision decrying the Trump administration as xenophobic and fascist. As we reported in April, various artists, most who are US or European citizens, have already spoken out against it. But when we reached out to a number of artists and curators after the Supreme Courts decision, many declined to comment further on the issue, hinting at the dispiriting effect it has had on the art world.
The New York-based Iranian curators Mahya Soltani and Kiana Pirouz, who organised the exhibition Before We Were Banned earlier this year, a show to celebrate the artists of the countries identified in the travel ban, told us in a joint statement that “acts of xenophobia like this are not new in the US and they rely on false narratives to dehumanise the people affected and stoke fear in the American people”. In second iteration of their project, on view from 7 July-5 August at the East of West gallery in Santa Fe, the curators “invite people to heal through art and community as well as support immigrant artists in these times”.
Early consequences of the travel ban have already begun to unfold. Last month, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art launched a comprehensive exhibition of Iranian art, although many of the Iran-based artists included in the show could not attend the opening.
