'No excuses': Frick director offers apology over Islamic art exhibition controversy
about 6 months ago (11/10/2023)
'No excuses': Frick director offers apology over Islamic art exhibition controversy | TribLIVE.com Art & Museums 'No excuses': Frick director offers apology over Islamic art exhibition controversy Julia Maruca Friday, Nov. 10, 2023 1:01 p.m. | Friday, Nov. 10, 2023 1:01 p.m. Tribune-Review The head of The Frick Pittsburgh art museum apologized for “failing to communicate clearly and openly” about the rescheduling of an exhibit of historical Islamic art that the museum initially postponed indefinitely over perception concerns in light of the Israel/Hamas war. The head of The Frick Pittsburgh art museum apologized for “failing to communicate clearly and openly” about the initial indefinite postponement of an Islamic art exhibition over perception concerns in light of the Israel/Hamas war. In a statement Thursday evening on the museum’s website and social media channels , executive director Elizabeth Barker said there were “no excuses for what I said, regardless of my intentions” and noted that the museum’s decisions around the exhibit “hurt people we deeply respect in the Muslim community, Jewish community, arts community, and beyond.” View this post on Instagram A post shared by The Frick Pittsburgh Museums and Gardens (@frickpittsburgh) “My words gave the offensive and utterly wrong impression that I equated Islam with terrorism and that I saw Jews and Muslims—communities with millennia of peaceful interconnection—as fundamentally opposed,” Barker said.