Sorry Gerry. You're just not the right sort for Che's V&A party

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Friday June 02, 2006 11:21

by Duncan Campbell - The Guardian Friday June 2, 2006

Curator furious as 'inappropriate' Adams barred from guest list

"I find the attitude of the museum bizarre and nonsensical. "On the basis of the current 'reason' offered by the V&A of refusing to invite politicians, it would appear that if Che was alive, he would be barred from his own exhibition. The British establishment works in wondrous ways." Gerry Adams

Che Guevara himself would have enjoyed the controversy. The Victoria and Albert Museum has decided that Gerry Adams, the Sinn Féin leader, should be removed from the guest list for next week's opening of its big exhibition on the "revolutionary and icon" because his attendance would not be "appropriate".

The museum authorities felt that because there was a high-profile exhibition of 60s fashion opening simultaneously, with many models and fashion photographers due to attend, Mr Adams's presence would not be "relevant". So Jerry Hall is on the guest list - but not Gerry Adams.

The decision has infuriated the exhibition's curator, Trisha Ziff. Yesterday Mr Adams said he wondered if Guevara would also have been barred, had he still been alive.

The exhibition arrives in London trailing plaudits. In Mexico City it was front-page news and increased museum attendance eightfold, while in Los Angeles it prompted protests by rightwing Cubans. Ms Ziff, originally from Leeds and now living in Mexico City, produced the exhibition of both rare and familiar photos, and was looking forward to a display in one of Britain's most prestigious venues. She submitted her guest list, which included Mr Adams, a personal friend with whom she had worked on exhibitions in the past.

She then received an email from Shaun Cole, acting head of the contemporary programme at the V&A, who told her all guests had been approved "except Gerry Adams, who is not relevant or appropriate". Ms Ziff, already unhappy that the museum had removed much of the text accompanying and explaining the images, which has now been posted on the website instead, said: "I was gobsmacked. Inviting Gerry was not a stunt and it never occurred to me there would be a problem."

After further inquiries, she was told the decision had been taken by "senior staff who won't be moved on this point". She inquired further and was then told by the museum's head of public affairs, Damien Whitmore, via email, that he needed help "with a difficult and very delicate situation".

Two other exhibitions were opening the same night, on design and fashion in the 60s, the latter sponsored by Miss Selfridge, which was bringing along "a number of models and actresses from the 60s as well as a number of fashion press".

He explained: "My difficulty is that the evening will attract a fashion crowd ... My sense is that having Gerry Adams there may not be appropriate because of this joint event ... I am sure you will understand our reasons for not inviting him."

Ms Ziff, however, does not understand, particularly as Mr Adams had jokingly told her he would have looked out his old Afghan jacket and loons for the occasion. She contacted Mark Jones, V&A director, who told her the museum had a policy of not inviting people affiliated to any political party. However, it turns out that Ken Livingstone, London's Labour mayor, has been invited.

"I find the attitude of the museum bizarre and nonsensical," said Mr Adams yesterday. "On the basis of the current 'reason' offered by the V&A of refusing to invite politicians, it would appear that if Che was alive, he would be barred from his own exhibition. The British establishment works in wondrous ways."

He would, as it happens, be in Spain, where he is due to be meeting political figures involved in peace efforts in the Basque country. But he found it odd that he was now welcome at 10 Downing Street but not at the V&A.

Ms Ziff remains dismayed. "It's extraordinary," she said. "The V&A have tried to turn it all [the Guevara exhibition] into just a design image and remove the resonance from it all.

"But you can't just turn Che Guevara into a commodity. The photo of Che by Alfredo Korda is the most reproduced image in history but it still has power. You can call it a storm in a teacup but it is really insidious. And on top of all that, the V&A shop is selling all these images of Che - there is even a Che lip balm.I'm amazed at the mindset."

Among items for sale during the exhibition will be a Che finger puppet, Che chocolate cigar, Che doll and Che cigar box as well as T-shirts, stickers, neon signs and badges.

A V&A spokeswoman said the museum had no comment. She could neither confirm nor deny a museum policy of not inviting politicians to exhibitions. A Miss Selfridge spokeswoman said about 1,000 guests from the world of fashion, design and photography were being invited to the joint opening.

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Comments (10 of 10)

Banned by toffee nosed brits - would they have banned Che as well?

by Seamus O'Hara

Fri Jun 02, 2006 21:35

This is the piece as it appeared in the Guardian today June 2 2006 - click to read, left-click to save

Guardian June 2 2006 Page 11

More readable text version

Oops

Fri Jun 02, 2006 21:38

Could an Editor swap in ths graphic for the second one above - thanks

All the readable text this time

thankyou Victoria and Albert

by Barry

Fri Jun 02, 2006 21:44

Had Adams got his photo opportunity he would have tried to tell us that if Che had lived hed have supported the peace process . And maybe shared a joke with war criminal Henry kIssinger and a handshake with Bush as Irish people protested outside .

We have been spared this horror possibly thanks to British snobbery but spared it nontheless .

Victoria and Albert museum, hardly a communist venue!!!

by rooster

Fri Jun 02, 2006 22:12

His is the iconic picture of a young man in a black beret which has adorned posters and T-shirts all over the world.

No, not Gerry Adams. Che Guevara.

Gerry has taken exception to the fact that he hasn't had an invite to an exhibition of Che memorabilia in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

Apparently he was on the original invitation list but his name was taken off because the museum operates a policy of not inviting people affiliated to any specific party.

Angry Gerry says that by these rules Che himself would not have got an invite to the exhibition.

Fair point.

Here's another:

Why would a socialist revolutionary want one?

possibly the first time

Fri Jun 02, 2006 23:00

and probably the last Ill ever agree with a word you said but , good point . Wish Id thought of it .

If Che were alive?

by Michael Gallager - Revolutionarey Socialist

Sat Jun 03, 2006 05:25

libertypix at yahoo dot co dot uk

In my opinion, If Che were alive he would not allow his name to be used in this way. These 'artistic socialists', -for want of a better phrase- are getting big money for these travelling exploitations. Is the poster with Che's image used by the famous (capitalist) spirit brewers being used in this exhibition? Apart from all the other good points made above, I think if this was a genuine effort to educate people n the great ways of revolutionary socialism and if Che were alive, maybe he would consider permitting Gerry Adams an entry but, I think he would say "not today Geroid, you are not a genuine revolutionary socialist." In fact he might even agree with some people, who say that Gerry is not a socialist at all. In my opinion.

the good old

Sat Jun 03, 2006 06:37

Champagne Socialists, you just can't beat them

Unwitting supporters of British censorship

by Harry

Sat Jun 03, 2006 10:06

It is a typical politically sectarian conceit to ignore what did happen here and to invent a fantasy scenario, in order to criticise someone you have political disagreements with, on spurious grounds.

Here is what did happen:

• The organiser of the exhibition put Gerry Adams on the guest list
• The museum bosses took his name off in an act of censorship
• They invented reasons for the censorship
• The exhibition organiser rejects the attempt by the museum to twist Che Guevara’s message and legacy.

She said:

It's extraordinary. The V&A have tried to turn it all [the Guevara exhibition] into just a design image and remove the resonance from it all.

"But you can't just turn Che Guevara into a commodity. The photo of Che by Alfredo Korda is the most reproduced image in history but it still has power. You can call it a storm in a teacup but it is really insidious. And on top of all that, the V&A shop is selling all these images of Che - there is even a Che lip balm. I'm amazed at the mindset."

This episode has a couple of important lessons. The first is that the British establishment have a reaction trip-switch when it comes to Ireland. The BBC relegated and marginalised of the news that a British Director, Ken Loach, had won the most prestigious film prize in the world – because that film exposed the nature of British imperial history in Ireland. The British newspapers, including the supposedly ‘liberal’ Independent, have attacked and tried to undermine the film. The second is that the censorship they engage in becomes endemic and creeps into the ideological mindset of those with a responsibility of the arts – a sector of society that is supposed to shun political control and censorship.

The action in rejecting Gerry Adams' name on a guest list shows that the museum owners reject the powerful anti-imperialist message of Che Guevara, while vainly attempting to constrain it within a kitsch and commodified image. The action, or rather its exposure, undermines their petty and faintly ridiculous project.

Gerry Adams would have been unable to attend the event in any case because of political wok he will be doing in the Spanish state. But that is not the point.

The comments here so far either support the spurious reasons for the censorship or in fact support the censorship itself, and echo the right-wing press coverage of this episode that will follow.

Political difference is one thing – defence of democratic rights and exposure of the reactionary nature of British attitudes to Ireland is another. The first imperative should not undermine the second. It has here.

Traditional anti-Irish bigotry ....

by Padraig O Braonain

Sat Jun 03, 2006 10:32

So Gerry Adams is barred from the Victoria and Albert Museum “Che Guevara exhibition?

If Che were alive today he would have a great laugh at that - of course Che Guevara loathed and despised this sort of upper-crust, hypocritical, arrogant snobbery.

But what I can’t understand is why the Museum management would leave themselves open like that.

They must have known the media would grab this story and show no mercy. And that’s exactly what happened, at least in media outlets that are read by honest and level headed punters.

Why did V&A not try to hide their anti-Irish bigotry? Could it be that academics are not as smart as they would like the general populace to think?

The banning is seen as just traditional anti-Irish bigotry and it is not going down well here in Ireland – one notable comment I heard was, “These are the sort of feckers we fought for 800 years to get rid of - and thank god we did”

Regards

Pádraig Ó Braonáin
The Thatched Cottage
Mweeloon, Mearì
Oran Mór,
Co. Galway

The Gerry & Che show

by Mweelrea Man - none

Thu Jun 08, 2006 13:01

If the brits weren't toffee-nosed, we would have to invent them.

I don't get it - if The Bearded One wanted to see the Che exhibition, it was on for more than one day.

He wasn't invited to the opening party - so what? He never met Che. He said that Che had a Lynch ancestor - on that basis why not invite the whole population?

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Sorry Gerry. You're just not the right sort for Che's V&A party

Comments (10 of 10)