In Conversation: David Velasco and Kate Sutton

On 19 October 2023, Artforum published “An Open Letter from the Art Community to Cultural Organizations,” which calls for “an end to the killing and harming of all civilians, an immediate ceasefire, [and] the passage of humanitarian aid into Gaza.” Days later, Penske Media — which had acquired Artforum at the beginning of the year — fired editor-in-chief David Velasco. Nearly half the editorial staff, including editor Kate Sutton, resigned in protest of Velasco’s dismissal, and more than seven hundred artists and writers signed onto a boycott of Penske publications, which has since been ratified by the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI). On 14 March 2024, Artforum named Tina Rivers Ryan as editor-in-chief. No changes were made to the managerial team responsible for Velasco’s discharge. In this conversation, Velasco and Sutton reflect on the situation and Ryan’s debut issue for Summer 2024.