Artists Protest Over Guggenheim Museum in Abu Dhabi

More than 130 artists in the Middle East are threatening to boycott the new museum that the Guggenheim Foundation plans to build in Abu Dhabi after they heard about allegations of poor treatment of foreign workers, reports The New York Times.

The artists say that contractors for the project have failed to pay recruitment fees, have not improved dangerous working conditions, and have withheld wages. A 2009 Human Rights Watch report raised questions about poor labor practices at Saadiyat Island, where most of the workers are housed.

Guggenheim officials said they were making efforts to ensure recruitment fees would be paid by contractors and that workers’ complaints would be monitored by an outside observer.

Walid Raad, a Lebanese artist who helped organize the boycott, says museum officials are not serious about focusing on the alleged abuses. “They’re paying lip service to some of the issues. But it’s been more ceremonial than actual.”