Russia’s return to the Venice Biennale has been met with disbelief and consternation among many. On Wednesday, during the press presentation, the Russian pavilion had to temporarily close its doors after a protest by Pussy Riot. Dressed in pink balaclavas, activists stormed the pavilion and shouted: “Blood is the art of Russia.”
Karen Van Eyken
Journalist at HLN
Source: The Guardian, Financial Times, BELGA
With their faces covered by pink balaclavas, waving pink smoke bombs and their chests exposed, they delivered their message. Several activists had written texts on their bodies, such as “Compiled by Putin, including corpses”, “Russia kills, the Biennale exhibits” and “Russian art, Ukrainian blood”. A statue in front of the pavilion was wrapped in a Ukrainian flag.
At one point, the group of about forty activists, including members of the feminist Ukrainian collective Femen, tried to enter the pavilion. However, they were stopped by officers at the entrance.
“We are here to remind that the only Russian culture, the only Russian art today, is blood,” Femen activist Inna Shevchenko told journalists. “This pavilion is located on Ukrainian mass graves.”
Nadja Tolokonnikova, co-founder of the Russian protest group Pussy Riot, told how she had watched in horror as the partying took place at the Russian pavilion the day before. Crates of prosecco were allegedly carried inside, accompanied by loud techno music.
“It’s so contradictory,” said Tolokonnikova, who led the action. “Europe keeps saying that Ukraine is the shield for the entire European continent, but at the same time it keeps opening the doors to Russian propaganda. It breaks my heart.”
The activist urgently called on Pietrangelo Buttafuoco, the chairman of the Biennale, to “stop accepting Russian money” and to enter into discussions with the action group. In a press statement, Pussy Riot also offered to curate the Russian pavilion itself in 2028. They promised to only show work by artists who are or have been imprisoned in Russian prison camps.
Diplomatic tensions surrounding Russian participation are now increasing. According to business newspaper ‘Financial Times’, the European Commission has warned both the Italian government and the organization of the Biennale that the participation of the Russian delegation violates EU sanctions.
No one was arrested during the protest. The promotion did attract a lot of attention, especially from astonished visitors who had only just entered the festival site after a long wait outside.
Lots of controversy
The resignation of the jury after a fuss over Israeli and Russian participation, a canceled opening ceremony, no presentation of prizes at the opening and a boycott by the Italian Minister of Culture: the 61st edition of the Venice Biennale, the largest art exhibition in the world, is overshadowed by controversy and politics.
Italian Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli announced that he would not attend the opening of the Biennale in protest against Russia’s participation.
Traditionally, the jury awards the prizes on the official opening day. But now this will happen on the last day of the exhibition in November and through a vote among visitors, it has been decided.
The art biennale runs from May 9 to November 22.
