Tate's Controversial Decisions and Pandemic Challenges in 2020

Tate Modern senior curator Mark Godfrey faced suspension after publicly criticizing the institution's decision to postpone a Philip Guston retrospective. The exhibition's delay, originally scheduled for London in February, sparked controversy due to concerns about the artist's depictions of Ku Klux Klan imagery. Tate directors Maria Balshaw and Frances Morris defended the move in The Times, emphasizing the need to maintain credibility with black and minority ethnic audiences. Meanwhile, Tate Britain encountered additional scrutiny over a restaurant mural featuring slavery imagery described as 'amusing.' Despite pandemic closures that led to 313 staff layoffs in retail and publishing, Tate venues managed to present exhibitions by Steve McQueen, Zanele Muholi, and Bruce Nauman at Tate Modern. Don McCullin's show appeared at Tate Liverpool, while Haegue Yang's work was displayed at Tate St Ives. The postponement of Guston's touring retrospective, planned for two years later, generated more attention than Tate's actual 2020 programming.