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Artist Santiago Sierra presented 24 photos with the faces pixelated, but otherwise recognisable, in his display – some of which are of politicians from Catalunya who are in custody over their involvement with the disputed independence referendum.
But the national government, in response to accusations of censorship, said: “There are no political prisoners in Spain.”
The decision to remove the exhibit was made by the organisers of the fair at Madrid's IFEMA centre as they wanted to 'avoid conflict and problems'.
They feared Sierra's display would distract visitors from all the other exhibits and lead to the Catalunya crisis hijacking the art fair.
Sierra considers the removal of his photographic exhibition will harm the image and reputation of ARCO Madrid and says it reflects 'an atmosphere of persecution'.
His works are, in general, deliberately controversial and aimed at lending visibility to topical issues – others have included a cacerolada in Argentina, where protesters bang saucepans to create noise, and a film of two men having sex.
The latter was displayed in Birmingham, UK, 16 years ago and caused a stir among the public.
IF YOU'RE in the Comunidad Valenciana any time between now and the early hours of March 20, you may notice an awful lot of noise and colour on the streets. It's the season for the region's biggest festival,...
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