Artists are none too happy with collector/future First Daughter Ivanka Trump. As noted in Bloomberg recently, the socialite has an impressive collection of contemporary art, including works by John Baldessari, Dan Colen, Christopher Wool, and many others. But now that the Trump family’s abhorrent politics have been made glaringly clear, many dealers and artists are facing “seller’s remorse.”
“No one could have anticipated Trump’s policies and how horrible he’s turned out to be, and no one could have anticipated that his daughter and son-in-law would agree with him,” gallerist Brendan Dugan told Bloomberg. Dugan’s bookstore/gallery Karma has shown several of the works in Ivanka’s collection, a relationship he clearly seems to regret: “The real argument is that the art world is primarily a marketplace, and if you have money, people will sell you things. I think maybe this is a wake-up call.”
But more directly, artist Alex Da Corte has confronted Ivanka Trump, who used one of his paintings as a backdrop in the above Instagram post: “@ivankatrump please get my work off of your walls. I am embarrassed to be seen with you.”
Da Corte also took part in protests outside Ivanka’s Manhattan apartment, spearheaded by Halt Action Group, a coalition of art world denizens and activists who have launched a “Dear Ivanka” campaign. Is the thinking here that Ivanka’s art world connections offer a glimmer of hope that she could be an outspoken voice of sanity in the White House? That seems unlikely. It’s more probable that arts professionals who have worked with her in the past (and profited from that relationship) are trying to distance themselves from the “Ivanka Brand”.
Ivanka in front of a David Ostrowski painting.
In August, ART news posted a round-up of Ivanka’s social media posts entitled “AND NOW: JUST A BUNCH OF PICTURES OF IVANKA TRUMP WITH MEDIOCRE ART“. It was pretty vitriolic. I reached out to some of the artists named in that post then, and none responded for comment at the time. Notably, a David Ostrowski painting seems to be one of Ivanka’s favorites, as she’s used it as a backdrop for Trump campaign videos during the Republican Primary as well as in interviews.
At any rate, it’s hard to not disagree with Halt Action Group (founded by curator Alison Gingeras, dealer Bill Powers, and artist Jonathan Horowitz). Here’s their open letter to the President Elect’s daughter:
Dear Ivanka,
Racism, anti-Semitism, misogyny, and homophobia are not acceptable anywhere—least of all in the White House.
Steve Bannon has no place in the White House. Jeff Sessions has no place in the White House. Talk of a Muslim registry has no place in the White House.
Hate has no place in the White House.
We refuse to “wait and see”. We look to you as the voice of reason.
Yours,
Halt Action Group
Comments on this entry are closed.
{ 1 trackback }