Dealer Dominique Lévy Says She Received Death Threats After Denouncing Post–October 7 Letter in Artforum
Dealer Dominique Lévy of the New York gallery Lévy Gorvy Dayan said in a Tablet profile that she received death threats and faced vandalism after denouncing an Artforum open letter published October 19, 2023 calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and describing Israel’s war as an “escalating genocide,” ARTnews reported. The letter, signed by artists including Nan Goldin, Tania Bruguera, and Kara Walker, did not mention the October 7 Hamas attack that killed 1,200 people and involved more than 250 hostages; Lévy, Brett Gorvy, and Amalia Dayan published a response the next day criticizing the letter as “one-sided.” One week later, Artforum editor David Velasco was fired, with the publisher saying the letter’s publication was not consistent with the magazine’s editorial process; Artforum is owned by Penske Media Corporation. Lévy told Tablet she hired security after “constant acts of vandalism,” and the profile—written by David Jager—also recounts her comments about protests at Columbia University and her broader views on US political responses to October 7.
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This story was covered in Auction Fever, Museum Fallout, and Artworld Threats