Creative Australia head apologises for 'hurt and pain' amid Khaled Sabsabi reinstatement for Venice Biennale
The renowned Lebanese Australian artist and curator Michael Dagostino were reinstated on Wednesday to their representative role almost six months after they were removed by the board.
In February, Sabsabi's commission for the prestigious art event was announced but, less than a week later, he and Dagostino had their invitation rescinded, with Creative Australia's board citing fears of a "prolonged and divisive debate".
On Thursday, Creative Australia acting chair Wesley Enoch said he wanted to publicly apologise for the incident, acknowledging there were a series of "missteps, assumptions and misunderstandings" in the board's call.
"I want to apologise to them for the hurt and pain they've gone through in this process," he told Radio National Breakfast.
"Though we will be stronger as a sector because of it, I know it's come at a personal cost, not just to them, but also to a whole range of people in the arts sector."
Sabsabi — who was selected for the Biennale on the recommendation of an expert panel — was dropped after questions were raised in Question Time in February.
They explicitly called out his previous works, including a 2006 work depicting the 9/11 attacks and another from 2007 showing the late Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah with beams of light coming from his eyes.
Enoch told Radio National an independent review had found that not one person or process was responsible for the controversial dumping but rather a " whole contextual issue".
"I'm very proud of the board in many ways because the rigour in which we undertook this was not easy," he said, adding that the board had interrogated its decision-making.
"I think it takes a very big heart to go 'we will engage in the process with integrity and thoughtfulness and move forward' and that's what we've done."
Following Sabsabi's removal, resignations quickly followed, including board member Lindy Lee and staff in the visual arts department at Creative Australia.
Lee told The Radio National Hour that the board acted on a "misunderstanding about that work in the beginning".
Asked about this, Enoch said the arts sector had rapidly evolved over the last two years.
"Some of these issues are coming up at such a rapid pace that the systems that were relevant to us even two years ago are no longer fit for purpose," he said.
"We as a sector have to be engaged in a much more rigorous kind of conversation around the messaging, the risk assessments, and how we go forward."
On Wednesday, Sabsabi and Dagostino said they were pleased by the reinstatement.
"This decision has renewed our confidence in Creative Australia and in the integrity of its selection process," they said in a joint statement.
"It offers a sense of resolution and allows us to move forward with optimism and hope after a period of significant personal and collective hardship.
The external review found "no single or predominant failure of process, governance or decision-making that resulted, ultimately, in the decision to rescind the selection of the artistic team", but instead "a series of missteps, assumptions and missed opportunities".
Creative Australia has accepted all the recommendations of the review.
Shadow Minister for the Arts Julian Leeser told Radio National the reinstatement was the "wrong decision" by Creative Australia.
"A representative for Australia on the world stage should reflect our values," he said.
"To reinstate this artist as our representative at the Biennale and to give them taxpayer funds flies in the face of those faces."
Speaking on ABC TV's Afternoon Briefing, Arts Minister Tony Burke said he applauded Creative Australia for reconsidering its decision.
"The Creative Australia board have done what a lot of boards often don't want to do [by reviewing their decision]."
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