Due to Russia’s admission to the upcoming Venice Biennale, the international jury announced its resignation shortly before the start of the important art exhibition. The organizers then announced on Thursday that the awards ceremony would be held on November 22nd instead of May 9th. One of the two prizes can be won “in accordance with the principle of inclusion and equal treatment” by any country listed on the official list of participants.
The exhibition in the Italian city stands for “openness, dialogue and the rejection of any form of isolation or censorship,” the Biennale organizers explained. The event wants and must remain “a place of truce in the name of art, culture and artistic freedom”.
A week ago, the jury declared that it would not award prizes to countries whose heads of state and government had been issued arrest warrants for war crimes by the International Criminal Court (ICC). This meant Russia and Israel.
In March, the organizers of the biennale announced that Russia would take part in the art exhibition again in 2022 for the first time since the start of the Ukraine war. The announcement was met with criticism from, among others, Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrij Sybiha.
The Venice Biennale has been taking place since 1895. This year it runs from May 9th to November 22nd.
