10.47313 The formation of indignation regimes: Indonesian artists, German discourses, and the documanta fifteen exhibition.

The formation of indignation regimes: Indonesian artists, German discourses, and the documanta fifteen exhibition.

Abstract

The documenta, held every five years in Kassel, Germany, is one of the
largest and most important art fairs worldwide. In 2022, the Indonesian art
collective Ruangrupa was in charge of the documenta, aiming to present their
lumbung-concept and represent voices from the Global South which then should
engage into dialogues with the audience in Germany. However, from the very
beginning, accusations of anti-Semitism occurred, and during the first days of
the exhibition, details of an artwork by the Indonesian collective Taring Padi
triggered large debates in Germany as people argued that anti-Semitic stereotypes
are incorporated in the painting.
In both conventional and online media, waves of indignation emerged.
Some criticized the anti-Semitism while others pointed towards racism some
PoC-artists at the documenta experienced. Others criticized censorship. In my talk
I will refer to Jonas Bens’ (2022) concept of “indignation regimes“to analyze the
discourses which emerged from the documenta. I suggest that different historical
experiences of anti-Semitism and colonialism in Germany and Indonesia (and,
by extension, the Global South) sharpened the indignation regimes, leaving
little room for meaningful debates. The view of the respective other (the “racist
German” for some Indonesians and the “anti-Semitic Indonesian Muslims” for
some Germans) served the function of stabilizing the own identity. Therefore, a
discursive rupture (resulting in new forms of self-images) might be a necessary
condition for a meaningful dialogue.