The banner of the Indonesian artist collective Taring Padi, which contained anti-Semitic pictorial elements, was taken down.
This was announced by the Documenta management of the FAZ on request on Tuesday afternoon.
The clear criticism of the work has apparently had an effect.
Initially, the Indonesian artists' collective "Taring Padi" responsible for the work "People's Justice", together with the management and the artistic direction, only decided to cover up the banner at Friedrichsplatz in Kassel and to install an explanation.
Taring Padi said her work was "in no way related to anti-Semitism."
“We are saddened that details of this banner are misunderstood other than their original purpose.
We apologize for the injuries caused in this regard," the statement read Monday night.
The banner was criticized by representatives of Jewish organizations, politicians and the media.
This is where artistic freedom finds its limits, said Minister of State for Culture Claudia Roth (Greens).
"Human dignity, protection against anti-Semitism, as well as against racism and any form of misanthropy are the basis of our coexistence," said Roth.
"Crossed a red line"
The President of the Central Council of Jews, Josef Schuster, called on those responsible for the Documenta to draw conclusions.
A red line has been crossed.
According to a media report, the public prosecutor's office has since been called in.
The association “WerteInitiative – Jewish-German Positions” explained in Berlin that on the work in question “a Jew was drawn like a vampire with sidelocks, fangs, a snake’s tongue, bloodshot eyes and an SS rune on his hat.
A Mossad agent depicted with a Jewish Star of David is characterized by a pig's face," says the Values Initiative.
Its chairman Elio Adler spoke of "classic anti-Semitism with state support", an "absolute dam bursting" and "open hatred of Jews".
"Appalled at sheer hatred of Jews"
The President of the Jewish community in Munich and Upper Bavaria, Charlotte Knobloch, was "horrified at the sheer hatred of Jews" that is shown in the picture.
"People with sidelocks and SS runes, plus a pig's head with the inscription 'Mossad': That's so clumsy and so unequivocally anti-Semitic that one wonders why all the series of talks and the long debates in the run-up to the documenta were really needed. if such a picture can still be shown in the middle of Kassel.”
Knobloch criticized the step initially announced on Monday evening to partially cover and “contextualize” the painting as “absurd”.
The "bare minimum" is that those responsible remove the anti-Semitic imagery completely from public space.
This is also in the interests of the other artists, she said.
According to a media report, the President of the German-Israeli Society (DIG), Volker Beck, has turned on the public prosecutor's office.
Beck said to the "Bild" newspaper: "Measured by the standards of the judgment of the Federal Court of Justice on the Wittenberg 'Judensau', the work of the Taring Padi artist collective represents an infringing condition." also attacked the validity and respect of every Jew living in Germany.
"The identification of a Jew with a kippah and hat, marked with an SS rune, demonizes Jews in general." He decided "to submit the matter to the public prosecutor's office in Berlin and Kassel for examination," said Beck.