Italian Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli will boycott the 61st Venice Biennale in protest against the reopening of the Russian pavilion, per euronews.com.
The Ministry of Culture confirmed that Mr Giuli will not attend the pre-opening events or the official ceremony on May 9, a sharp escalation in government tensions over Moscow’s return to the international art exhibition for the first time since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
The decision to host Russia was approved by Pietrangelo Buttafuoco, President of the Biennale Foundation, who compared the institution to a “UN of art” where no nation should be excluded. Mr Buttafuoco maintains that the agreement complies with European Education and Culture Executive Agency regulations.
However, the move has triggered a domestic and international backlash, with the European Commission threatening to withdraw €2 million in funding.
Internal friction within the Italian government has intensified following the controversy. Mr Giuli previously called for the resignation of Tamara Gregoretti, the ministry’s representative on the Biennale board, after she failed to oppose or report Moscow’s participation. Conversely, Infrastructure and Transport Minister Matteo Salvini supported the inclusion, arguing that culture should serve to unite rather than exclude.
While the Russian pavilion will be open to the media from May 6 to 8, it will remain closed to the general public for the duration of the event, which runs until November 22, 2026. Further diplomatic pressure has come from 22 EU member states, whose culture and foreign ministers formally requested that the board reconsider Russia’s involvement.
In a separate move, the Biennale jury announced that both Russia and Israel will be excluded from the Golden Lion and Silver Lion awards. The jury, led by Solange Farkas, stated that nations whose leaders face International Criminal Court arrest warrants for crimes against humanity would be barred from competition. This unprecedented restriction currently applies to Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The Venice Biennale is one of the world’s most prestigious cultural institutions. Russia’s voluntary withdrawal in 2022 followed widespread international condemnation of the war in Ukraine; its return in 2026 marks a significant shift in the event’s geopolitical neutrality.
•Featured image: Alessandro Giuli (c) Copyright 2024, dpa (www.dpa.de) Alle Rechte vorbehalten
