The Italian Ministry of Culture has sent inspectors to the Venice Biennale over permission to open a Russian pavilion at the exhibition.
This is reported by ANSA, citing sources.
A day earlier, the Italian newspaper Exibart wrote that the Russian pavilion would be available to visitors only during the preview days of May 5-8. It would then be closed to the public until the end of the Biennale, which will take place from May 9 to November 22, 2026.
Russiaʼs participation in the Venice Biennale
The Venice Biennale is one of the leading exhibitions of contemporary art, held every two years in Venice, Italy. The Biennale includes thematic exhibitions of contemporary art and national pavilions.
Russia was a regular participant in the Venice Biennale, but its participation in 2022 was canceled. This happened on February 27, a few days after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. This year, the Russian pavilion was called The tree is rooted in the sky.
Before that, the Russian delegate for international cultural exchanges and former Minister of Culture Mikhail Shvydkoy said that one of the messages of the pavilion was that “politics exists in temporal dimensions, while cultures communicate in eternity”.
On March 10, European Commission Vice-President Henna Virkunen and European Commissioner Glenn Micallef spoke out against Russiaʼs participation. They called the decision to admit Russia incompatible with the EUʼs collective response to Russian aggression.
If the Biennale Foundation does not reconsider, the European Commission may suspend or terminate its grant. Subsequently, the culture ministers of 22 European countries signed a joint appeal against Russiaʼs return to this yearʼs Venice Biennale.
At the same time, the exhibition jury announced that it would not consider Russia and Israel among the contenders for the main awards — the Golden Lion and the Silver Lion.
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