Installation view of Queermuseum: Queer Tactics Toward Non-Heteronormative Curating at Santander Cultural (all images courtesy Gaudêncio Fidelis unless otherwise noted)

In early on August, the cultural eye Santander Cultural in Porto Alegre, Brazil, opened an exhibition on queer art. Featuring 85 artists and 263 artworks ranging from the mid-20th century to today,Queermuseum: Queer Tactics Toward Non-Heteronormative Curating was anchored, as curator Gaudêncio Fidelis put information technology in the catalogue, "in a concept we believe dearly: diversity observed nether the aspects of diverseness, plurality, and difference." The exhibition featured prominent artists such as Lygia Clark, Cândido Portinari, and José Leonilson, alongside bottom known, contemporary ones. It was the first major exhibition defended to queer art in Brazil — until it was shut down yesterday, September 10, near one month before its planned end date.

Santander Cultural, a gallery infinite sponsored by the eponymous Spanishbank, decided to shutQueermuseum after receiving an onslaught of vitriolic criticism on social media and from gallery visitors last week. People have defendant the artwork of being offensive likewise as harmful to children, citing irreverence, pedophilia, and animality. One of Santander'southward buildings was recently tagged with the phrases "the Santander Depository financial institution supports pedophilia" and "they are antichrists." Backside these protests is the libertarian group Movimento Brasil Livre (MBL), which has gained traction throughout the state always since it drew mass support of former President Dilma Rousseff'south impeachment. "Pedophilia, zoophilia, and the sexualization of children definitely exercise NOT stand for the LGBT universe," the group wrote earlier today on its Facebook page.

Installation view of Queermuseum: Queer Tactics Toward Non-Heteronormative Curating at Santander Cultural

In an interview with Hyperallergic, Fidelis, the curator, said he hadn't been consulted past Santander and was caught off-guard by its decision. According to Fidelis, during the 25 days that the exhibition had been up, there had been no complaints. It wasn't until last Wednesday that members of MBL began infiltrating the exhibition, assaulting visitors, and taking videos of the exhibition and posting them to Facebook.

Adriana Varejão, "Cena de interior Two" (1994) (photograph past Eduardo Ortega). The work deals with racial, sexual, and gender stereotypes in the history of Brazil.

In one video, three men pan over the artworks, exclaiming, "See for yourself whether this is art!" Among the images they linger on are Adriana Varejão's 1994 painting depicting gay and interracial sex and Antonio Obá'southward "Et Verbum" (2011), where communion wafers are scrawled with words such as "vulva," "natural language," and "asshole." "This guy should exist in jail," ane of the men says, referring to Fidelis. "They are perverting the notions of family."

Amid intensifying online debate on Sun, Santander announced on Facebook its determination to accept down the exhibition. In the statement, information technology apologizes to those who felt disrespected and ultimately concludes thatQueermuseumwas "not in line with our view of the world." Ironically, Santander critiques the exhibition, which celebrated marginalized artists, for not existence "inclusive" and not "generating positive reflection." The statement, which is worth reading in its entirety, is translated in full below:

In the terminal days, we've received various critiques about the exhibitionQueermuseu – Cartografias da diferença na Arte Brasileira. Nosotros are sincerely sorry to all of those who felt offended by whatsoever artwork included in the brandish.

The aim of Santander Cultural is to encourage the arts and promote contend effectually the big questions of the contemporary world, and not generate whatsoever type of boldness or discord. Our role, as a cultural space, is to shed lite on the work of curators and Brazilian artists to inspire reflection. Nosotros have ever washed this without interfering in the content to preserve the independence of its authors, and this has been the nearly efficient style of delivering innovative work of quality to the public.

This time, however, we heard the complaints and sympathize that some of the works in the exhibitionQueermuseudisrespected symbols, beliefs, and people, which is not in line with our view of the globe. When fine art is non capable of being inclusive and generating positive reflection, information technology loses its greatest purpose, which is to elevate the human being condition.

The Santander Cultural does non support i blazon of fine art, only art in its plurality, grounded in the profound respect nosotros accept for each individual. For this reason, we've decided to close the exhibition this Sunday, 09/10. However, we guarantee to go along to be committed to the promotion of the debate around diversity and other big contemporary themes.

Fernando Baril, "Cruzando Jesus Cristo com Deusa Schiva" (1996) (photograph by F.Zago Studio Z)

When asked what he idea of Santander's official statement, Fidelis said, "I found it labyrinthine." Co-ordinate to him, Santander had been closely involved with the planning of the exhibition, and knew about every artwork that was going to be included. "To be articulate," he said, "I don't consider the exhibition to be polemical in any way."

Fidelis believes Santander has created a scary precedent with how it chose to deal with far-right criticism. "Nosotros've closed off dialogue," he said. "During the fourth dimension of the dictatorship we had all sorts of issues — censorship, etc. — but nothing quite on this calibration, all done in ane stroke."

Meanwhile,Queermuseumhas generated enough of local support and social media users accept organized a counter-protest to accept place tomorrow, September 12, exterior the Santander Cultural.

Danillo Villa, "Fuck" (2016)

Elisa Wouk Almino is a senior editor at Hyperallergic. She is based in Los Angeles. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram. More by Elisa Wouk Almino