We are appalled at the racist abuse that artist Nadina Ali is receiving about her work as part of The Gallery.

We are calling out the racists who are targeting her on social media and through hate mail, as well as irresponsible sectors of the media who are intent on generating fake outrage to cover their divisive intentions. We stand in solidarity with Nadina and all artists who work in the public domain. We defend their right to express their opinions free from targeted hatred and racist persecution. The Britain we believe in defends the principle of free speech and is open, democratic and tolerant of diversity.

For the first exhibition of The Gallery, we invited artists from around the world to respond to the theme ‘Straight White Male’. Ten artists were selected out of 450 submissions. They are diverse, plural, and strong-minded. Each brings different views to the table. Often the artworks disagree with each other. They demonstrate how well-expressed and contradictory views can illuminate the heart and soul of an issue.

We’re not asking that the public should necessarily agree with the statements in any of the artworks, just that they should think about and debate the ideas.

The full collection of all 10 artworks may be seen at thegallery.org.uk.