Show Postponed Close To Opening Over Cultural Sensitivity, Exploitation Concerns

Sara Bruestle, writing for Washington’s HeraldNet, tells the story of Artist of the Year, Bob Fink, who won a solo show at the Shack Art Center as part of the award. After about two years of preparation, the show “Indigenous Peoples: Photos from the Ends of the Earth” was ready to open.

However, Art Center administration postponed the show until next year because some of the images showed people from ancient tribes in Papua New Guinea and Ethiopia. The delay will give the staff time to finalize policies about shows that contain images of indigenous people and would ensure that the work is not exploitive.

Fink noted that he lived with the tribes, had his subjects choose how to present themselves, and got approval from tribal leaders for every image and title in the show.

For more information, see the online story here.

Photo of children in Papua New Guinea (detail) by Vika Chartier on Unsplash