Two months after a ruling by the Tasmanian Civil and Administrative Tribunal led to the shut-down of a women-only exhibition at the Museum of Old and New Art (MONA), the curator of the exhibit has decided to move some of its Picasso collection into a female toilet cubicle.
The curator and artist Kirsha Kaechele revealed on Instagram this week that a few paintings by the late Spanish artist which had previously been hanging in the museum’s Ladies Lounge are now hanging inside the female toilets.
On Instagram, Kaechele described the painting’s new homes as “A new exhibition at Mona. Just for ladies…” before revealing that the museum has “never had female toilets… before, they were all unisex.”
“But then the Ladies Lounge had to close thanks to a lawsuit brought on by a man. And I just didn’t know what to do with all those Picassos…”
In April, the state’s Tribunal ruled in favour of NSW man Jason Lau, who accused Moorilla Estate, the parent company of MONA, of discriminating against him when he was refused entry into Kaechele’s conceptual art and women’s only space, the Ladies Lounge.
Deputy President of the TASCAT Richard Grueber said at the time that under Section 26 of the Anti-Discrimination Act 1998, MONA’s refusal of Lau’s entry into the Ladies Lounge was “direct discrimination”.
The Lounge was forced to close within 28 days and has remained closed since. Kaechele subsequently released a statement announcing she would be appealing the tribunal’s decision in the supreme court and declaring that “We need to challenge the law to consider a broader reading of its definitions as they apply to art and the impact it has on the world, as well as the right for conceptual art to make some people (men) uncomfortable.”
In her post this week, Kaechele referred to the judge’s ruling, calling it “a fantastic read”. She also recommended an essay she wrote for the Mona blog “exploring the various exemptions we may employ for continuing to discriminate against men,” which was in her bio.
She added that the museum would attempt to re-launch the Lounge again “as a church / school / boutique glamping accomodation / facilities / etc under Section 26 of the Anti Discrimination Act, but in the meantime, enjoy! (ladies) (that applies to ALL ladies, you know when you are and when you are you’re welcome.)”
The Ladies Lounge opened in 2020 at MONA as a “women-only” space within the museum, containing unique artworks and lush, velvet lounges. It was designed by Kaechele, who said she wanted the space to be “rebellious, provocative, exclusive, self-indulgent.”