A Polish group called ‘Indeks 73′ has launched a petition to protest against the censorhip of David Cerny’s Entropa art work.
“Europe lacks critical reflection on controversial topics,” Indeks 73 writes in an open letter to the Bulgarian authorities that insisted on having their ‘Turkish toilet’ in Entropa covered up by a black cloth. “The real debate respecting opposing voices from different cultures, mentalities and ambitions has disappeared from political agendas.”
The group describes itself as an “informal collective of art activists, journalists and theoriticians” who aim to protect freedom of expression that’s guaranteed under the Polish constitution.
Its open letter carries the signatures of Izabela Kowalczyk PhD (art critic and theoretician, WSHiD Poznan), Agnieszka Kaim (social activist, Kultura Miejska Gdansk), Lidia Makowska (art and social activist, Kultura Miejska Gdansk), Ewa Majewska, PhD. (philosopher, Gender Studies Uniwersytet Warszawski), Daniel Muzyczuk (art historian, curator, Contemporary Art Centre Torun), Jacek Niegoda (artist), Roman Pawłowski (journalist, theatre critic, Gazeta Wyborcza Warszaw
“We are appealing to You to remove the black fabric from the “Entropa” and join the broad debate about real European problems,” they write. “David Černý’s self-irony and the famous Czech sense of humour might be of great help. As he has proved with “Entropa”, art has the power to provoke serious discussion and reactions, which reveal a lot of hidden mechanisms in contemporary art practice, media and power strategy.”
