Tasmania’s Museum of Old and New Art has relocated a Picasso painting to a women’s restroom following a legal ruling. The move comes after it was found that the museum’s women-only exhibition space, the Ladies Lounge, violated anti-discrimination laws. The Ladies Lounge was originally an exclusive exhibit where women could enjoy art while being served champagne by male butlers. This space was inspired by the historical exclusion of women from Australian pubs until 1965. In 2023, New South Wales resident Jason Lau sued Mona for denying him entry, prompting the decision. The museum argued that the Ladies Lounge promoted equal opportunity by addressing women’s historical disadvantages. Kirsha Kaechele announced plans to maintain the Ladies Lounge as a toilet, a church, or other entity to legally restrict male access. The museum plans to allow men into the exhibit on Sundays to engage in laundry-folding activities designed by Tai Chi masters. Despite the controversy, Kaechele stands firm, stating that women deserve spaces away from men as reparations for historical inequalities.
Source Agencies
