Newly published text messages between leaders at the University of North Texas (UNT) reveal that administrators feared “any barking from Austin” over plans to cancel an exhibition featuring artwork critical of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Urgent Matter reports that the communications show school president Harrison Keller and provost Michael McPherson discussing “Ni De Aquí, Ni De Allá,” an exhibition of work by Brooklyn artist Victor Quiñonez, one week before the show was canceled this February.
“Our group met this morning regarding the gallery show. We believe all pieces that are of concern can be removed and the rest of the exhibition can continue. You ok with that?” McPherson reportedly wrote to Keller, who responded by thanking him for his help.
McPherson subsequently apologized, writing that the university had “gotten ahead of this” in relation to the controversy. She followed up with another message expressing concern that photographs of the artworks featuring anti-ICE messages could circulate before their removal.
“I think it’ll be easier to manage any barking from our friends in Austin,” McPherson said, referring to the Texas state capital. “There will likely be some folks who are upset about perceived censorship. UBSC is ready to address any as such.”
Urgent Matter also revealed documents related to the exhibition, including emails sent on February 10 in which UNT leaders discussed how to announce the show’s closure to students.
In the email chain, art professor Nicole Foran wrote that a student had told her the window at UNT’s College of Visual Arts and Design Galleries, where the work was installed, had been blocked. The student reportedly asked whether the show would still open, prompting Foran to ask university leadership how she should respond.
“This is what I am telling front desk workers: The gallery is closed this week and we will have more information later,” Heidi Strobel, the associate dean for academic and student affairs, replied.
Karen Hutzel, the school’s dean, then added, “This works. We will have more information once we have a new show to announce – so that is a truthful statement.”
A document outlining policies and practices at UNT’s College of Visual Arts and Design Galleries, where the work was set to be shown, details how the university canceled the exhibition despite policies against censorship.
“The CVAD Galleries is devoted to the principle of freedom of expression, artistic and otherwise, and does not censor our exhibitors or their content,” the document states. “Regarding works with the potential for strong reactions, the CVAD Galleries Director and Curator will share information on potential content issues with the CVAD Dean.”
In an email to gallery director Stefanie Dlugosz-Acton on February 12, Hutzel provided a boilerplate cancelation notice for Boston University, where the show debuted last fall, that included the lines: “Personalized greeting that does not express regret or an apology. I am writing to notify you that the university is terminating its art loan agreement with Boston University Art Galleries for the exhibition entitled ‘Ni de Aquí, Ni de Allá.’” The email template continued that UNT “will satisfy all terms and conditions set out in the agreement associated with the termination, including making outgoing shipping arrangements and paying Boston University any monies owed.”
Hutzel also emailed a template for Dlugosz-Acton to send to Quiñonez, suggesting a “personalized greeting that does not express regret or an apology.”
“The university is making arrangements to return the exhibit to Boston University,” the email reportedly reads. “Any activities associated with the exhibition are no longer necessary. However, please let us know if you have incurred travel expenses related to the exhibition for reimbursement.”
Leaked faculty meeting transcripts published by the Denton Record-Chronicle show Hutzel calling the cancellation an “institutional directive,” while declining to name its source. Colleagues were warned to expect a “media storm,” according to the transcripts.
In the leaked transcripts, Hutzel reportedly told employees that while the school’s administration might survive the reputational fallout, the college itself could face scrutiny from elected officials with the power to allocate—or withhold—state funding.
Amid escalating ideological clashes over university programs, Republican lawmakers in Texas have used the budget to eliminate faculty and administrative positions and cut academic offerings, as seen recently at the University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M University.
During the meeting, a CVAD department official reportedly asked Hutzel whether UNT’s legal team would decline to represent faculty members, despite their constitutional right to free speech.
“I don’t believe the university is going to deploy its legal counsel to protect an individual faculty member,” Hutzel replied. “I don’t think we’ve seen that elsewhere, either. I’m just being honest. It’s not an absolute answer, but that’s how I understand it.”
ARTnews has contacted university leadership and the UNT art gallery for comment.
