Venice Art Biennale, Mic requests documents on compatibility of the Russian Pavilion with sanctions

“In order to clarify the terms of national participation in the 2026 Biennale”, the MiC “requested a full copy of the correspondence between the Foundation and the Russian authorities, aimed at defining the organizational and management structures of the presence of the Russian Federation in Venice”.

The reconstruction of the reasons for participation

Russia was not invited to the 61st International Art Exhibition of the Venice Biennale, which will take place from Saturday 9 May to Sunday 22 November 2026 with the participation of 99 countries and 31 collateral events. The presence of the Russian Federation derives, however, from an ordinary procedure provided for by the event regulations for countries that have their own pavilion at the Giardini. Russia has owned a pavilion at the Giardini since 1914. In total, 29 countries own a national pavilion at the Biennale, to which Qatar will be added this year.

Twenty-two European countries against the presence of Russia

The presence of the Russian Federation at the 61st International Art Exhibition of the Venice Biennale is “unacceptable in the current circumstances”. Twenty-two European countries have signed a letter addressed to the president of the Venice Biennale, Pietrangelo Buttafuoco, and to the members of the Board of Directors to express their opposition to Russia’s participation, through an exhibition set up in their national pavilion, in the Art Biennale scheduled from 9 May to 22 November 2026. In the document, signed by ministers of Culture and Foreign Affairs, the signatories state that they wish to reiterate their commitment to “common European values – artistic freedom and freedom of expression, and respect for human dignity”, recalling how the Venice Biennale has represented for over a century “one of the most prestigious expressions of artistic freedom in the world”.