Students at Goldsmiths University have ended a months-long boycott of Goldsmiths after the Center for Contemporary Art (CCA) ended its relationship with donors Candida and Zak Gertler Center for Contemporary Art (CCA) events, their names will be removed from exhibition spaces and panels.
The Gertlers, who last donated to CAA in 2017, were the main targets of protests organized by the student group Goldsmiths for Palestine. The group is demanding that schools divest from these philanthropists because of their alleged personal ties to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and financial support of his political campaigns. Zach Gertler’s wealth comes from his family’s real estate business.
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The protests included a 27-day occupation of the gallery between May and June, forcing the CCA to temporarily close. Student activists have accused the Gertler family of supporting Israel’s war in Gaza by providing funds to the Jewish National Fund, a New York-based organization that provides donations to West Bank settlements.
During the occupation, students exchanged a plaque bearing Gertler’s name for another bearing the name of Walid Daqqa. Walid Dhaka was a Palestinian writer and political prisoner who died in Israeli custody in April this year at the age of 63. The week-long exhibition, titled “The Palestinian People’s Exhibition,” showcases the work of Palestinian artists.
in a statement The Art NewspaperA CCA spokesperson, who first reported the news, confirmed the museum’s decision to remove Gertler’s name from the gallery. The couple is still listed as one of ten donors in the gallery’s online “major donor” category. (The Gertlers could not be reached for comment.)
Candida Gertler has been the target of other calls for divestment across the arts community. In April, South African artist Gabrielle Goliath announced that she would not accept funding from the Outset Contemporary Art Fund, a partnership between Gertler and Yana Peele. A British charity co-founded by Yana Peel, who is no longer affiliated with the fund.
