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From:
Artnews
- May 5, 2026 11:58 p.m
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Iran has pulled out of the Venice Biennale, the world’s most important art exhibition, as the war with the United States and Israel continues.
“Regarding national participations in the 61st International Art Exhibition, ‘In Minor Keys’ by Koyo Kouoh (May 9 – November 22, 2026), the Biennale has been informed that the Islamic Republic of Iran will not be participating,” said a statement from the Biennale, noting that there are now a total of 100 pavilion sites at the exhibition instead of the previous 101.
The biennale has explained the reason why Iran will no longer have a pavilion. On the exhibition’s official website, Iran is the only country listed without artistic representatives. Aydin Mahdizadeh Tehrani appears as the commissioner of the pavilion.
It is the latest development to roil the Biennale, which opens to the media this week amid a flurry of controversy. Last week, the Biennale suddenly lost its jury, which announced that it had resigned. The five-member jury had previously said it would not consider any country accused of crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court, a condition that would have excluded both Israel and Russia from running for the Golden Lion awards.
With the absence of a jury for the awards, the Biennale announced that this time the winners will be selected through a public vote at the end of the Biennale. Meanwhile, the Israel and Russia pavilions have sparked widespread controversy, with politicians, artists and even participants in Koyo Kouoh’s main exhibition calling on the Biennale to exclude both countries from the exhibition. The Biennale has declared that it does not have the power to remove a state recognized as such from Italy.
