Digital Editions
Newsletters
Subscribe
Digital Editions
Newsletters
Art market
Museums & heritage
Exhibitions
Books
Podcasts
Columns
Technology
Adventures with Van Gogh
Art market
Museums & heritage
Exhibitions
Books
Podcasts
Columns
Technology
Adventures with Van Gogh
Politics
news

Artist demands Baku art centre pulls his exhibition for using it as a 'propaganda tool' in Azerbaijan-Armenia conflict

Turkish-born Ahmet Ogut says the Yarat Contemporary Art Space refused to take down the exhibition banner with his name appearing next to the Azerbaijani flag

Anna Sansom
30 October 2020
Share
Ahmet Ogut has accused Yarat Contemporary Art Space in Baku of politicising his exhibition © Yarat/Facebook

Ahmet Ogut has accused Yarat Contemporary Art Space in Baku of politicising his exhibition © Yarat/Facebook

The Yarat Contemporary Art Space in Baku, Azerbaijan, has closed an exhibition three weeks early after the artist Ahmet Ogut publicly accused the institution of using his exhibition banner as a "propaganda tool" in the Azerbaijan-Armenia conflict and demanded that the show be pulled.

Ogut, a Turkish-born artist based between Amsterdam and Berlin, wrote in a statement yesterday: "I have become aware that the banner of my exhibition is being used as a propaganda tool in social media along with politically motivated statements that have nothing to do with my independent vision or the content of my exhibition. As the institution has regrettably rejected my requests to take down the exhibition banner with my name appearing next to the Azerbaijani national flag on the facade of its building and the photo thereof on its social media sites, I have no other option but to demand the immediate closure of my exhibition."

A still from Ahmet Ogut’s video No Poem Loves Its Poet (2020) that was included in the exhibition © the artist

The exhibition was due to close on 20 November but following the furore, Yarat posted on its website yesterday that the exhibition had closed on 28 October.

Mari Spirito, the executive director of Protocinema, who independently curated the exhibition, tells The Art Newspaper: "Ahmet learned about the [Instagram] post on 25 October and asked them [to close the exhibition] for the first time on 26 October. There was a back-and-forth until he had no choice but to make a public statement."

Titled No Poem Loves Its Poet, Ogut’s exhibition opened in May before fighting resumed between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the disputed mountainous enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh.

According to Yarat’s website, the artist created two video and sculpture commissions with allusions to "governing bodies in Azerbaijan and how they have attempted to remove traces of their predecessors through urban gentrification, social norms and economic power".

Ogut denies that the works refer directly to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. "During my career as an artist, I have worked many times in conflicted areas and have responded to the local situation with nuanced and challenging artworks," his statement reads.

Nagorno-Karabakh is officially part of Azerbaijan but is controlled by Armenian forces. The two countries accuse each other of violating a US-brokered ceasefire, which follows two failed ceasefires brokered by Russia since tensions resurged in late September. Azerbaijan has claimed that the Armenian military has targeted civilians and heritage sites .

Yarat did not respond to a request for a comment.

PoliticsArtistsWar & ConflictAzerbaijanArmeniaNagorno-KarabakhContemporary art
Share
Subscribe to The Art Newspaper’s digital newsletter for your daily digest of essential news, views and analysis from the international art world delivered directly to your inbox.
Newsletter sign-up
Information
About
Contact
Cookie policy
Data protection
Privacy policy
Frequently Asked Questions
Subscription T&Cs
Terms and conditions
Advertise
Sister Papers
Sponsorship policy
Follow us
Instagram
Bluesky
LinkedIn
Facebook
TikTok
YouTube
© The Art Newspaper

Related content

Armenianews
26 October 2020

Armenian monuments in line of fire in Nagorno-Karabakh conflict

Unesco accused of turning a blind eye to destruction of heritage sites, as bitter skirmish between Azerbaijan and Armenia in the disputed territory drags on

Dorian Batycka
Warnews
29 January 2021

Azerbaijan refuses to hand over 1,500 artworks after seizing 'cultural capital' in Nagorno-Karabakh

Artsakhi ministers have asked Russia to intervene in their bid to recoup paintings, sculptures, and precious stones after relinquishing culturally significant city of Shusha

George Nelson