Artists at London's ICA stage mass walkout in support of pro-Palestine protesters

More than 20 artists taking part in the New Contemporaries exhibition at London’s Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) staged a walkout at the show preview on 14 January in support of pro-Palestine demonstrators gathered at the venue. The ICA, however, has described the protest as “misguided” and based on misinformation.

The pro-Palestine supporters called on the ICA to cut ties with Bloomberg Philanthropies, the sponsor of the New Contemporaries exhibition (15 January-23 March). The protest was led by The UK Jinnaah (wing or pavilion) of the Gaza Biennale, and supported by the Palestinian Youth Movement.

In a statement, the protest group alleges: “Bloomberg Philanthropies support various initiatives in Israel, primarily focusing on urban development, leadership training, and municipal governance, and are directly implicated in facilitating settlement infrastructure in the West Bank.” Bloomberg Philanthropies did not respond to a request for comment.

Roo Dhissou and Fi Isidore were among the artists taking part in the action. “I am one of the New Contemporaries artists at the protest. Twenty-eight of us co-wrote and signed the statement in solidarity with the Gaza Biennale, and then walked out of the exhibition to join the protest,” Isidore tells The Art Newspaper.

Dhissou delivered a speech at the ICA opening, stating that New Contemporaries marks its 75th anniversary by returning to the ICA, where the show has been held annually in recent years. “For 50 years, New Contemporaries was not only possible but successful, without the fiscal backing of Bloomberg Philanthropies,” she said. She went on to reiterate calls for the ICA and New Contemporaries to drop the funding from Bloomberg Philanthropies.

The ICA, however, says that it has not received funding from Bloomberg Philanthropies in recent years. “The request to cut ties with Bloomberg Philanthropies would be difficult, given the ICA hasn't received any funding from Bloomberg or Bloomberg Philanthropies since 2020,” says an ICA spokesperson, who also clarified that funding went directly to New Contemporaries.

The spokesperson adds: “The ICA has always been and continues to be a safe and welcoming space that encourages dialogue and debate, recognising that differing viewpoints are essential for the advancement of contemporary arts and culture. We respect the right to protest, particularly on issues as urgent as the ongoing conflict. Sadly however, this protest (13 January) was misguided, given much of the information they relied on regarding the ICA's position was factually untrue.”

A spokesperson for New Contemporaries confirmed it had received an undisclosed figure from Bloomberg Philanthropies to fund the exhibition. The spokesperson says: “New Contemporaries is fully supportive of the artists’ right to protest and to show solidarity with the Gaza Biennale. The reality of the arts funding landscape in the UK means that we continue to be reliant on contributions from sponsors and supporters in order to stay operational.”

The protesters also highlighted “the demands of former ICA workers who were made redundant following their actions in solidarity with Palestinians”. Their statement refers to an incident in 2024, in which 14 former ICA staffers claimed their dismissals were linked to their involvement in writing and publishing a letter calling for the institute to boycott Israel.

Staff, however, were told by ICA management that the layoffs were due to financial cuts. The claims that employees were made redundant for their actions in solidarity with Palestinians are “categorically untrue”, the ICA spokesperson says.

During the protest, images of artists’ works from the Gaza Biennale were shown on the external walls of the ICA. More than 60 Palestinian artists are participating in the biennial, which will be shown at galleries and museums worldwide. A spokesperson for the Palestinian Youth Movement says: “A key aspect of genocide is cultural erasure and so displaying the Gaza Biennale on the side of the ICA shows us that Palestinians in Gaza insist on life, on art, and on resistance in the face of a genocide that attempts to erase all aspects of Palestinian life and identity.”

The New Contemporaries show features 35 artists selected through an open call. New Contemporaries, an organisation supporting emerging and early career artists, launched the exhibition last year in Plymouth.