Russia's announced participation in the 2026 Venice Biennale has already sparked strong protests. Ukraine has called on the organizers to reverse this decision and prevent Russia's return to this major contemporary art event, whose next edition is scheduled to take place from May 9 to November 22.
In a statement, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga and Culture Minister Tetiana Berezhna called on the Biennale to maintain the approach adopted in 2022 and 2024, when Russia was excluded from the event, according to AFP.
Kyiv denounces Moscow's political use of culture
For Ukrainian authorities, the issue goes beyond purely artistic matters. Kyiv believes that Russia is using culture as a tool of influence and therefore considers its presence at major international events unacceptable as long as the war continues. In their statement, the two ministers also emphasized the human and cultural cost of the conflict for the Ukrainian cultural sector, citing the deaths of hundreds of artists and the destruction of numerous sites, according to AFP.
The controversy is all the more intense given that Russia is set to officially rejoin the 2026 edition after two editions marked by its absence. In 2024, its pavilion was even rented to Bolivia. This time, nearly 40 Russian artists are slated to participate in an exhibition entitled "The Tree Is Rooted in the Sky," planned for the Russian pavilion.
A return already recovered on the symbolic field
Kyiv sees this return as a political victory for Moscow. Mikhail Shvydkoy, Vladimir Putin's special representative for international cultural cooperation, already views it as proof that Russian culture is not isolated and that attempts to silence it have failed, according to the source articles.
The affair also takes on a broader dimension, as it comes at a time when other Russian readmissions to the international stage are sparking protests in Ukraine. The Venice Biennale, one of the most important events in contemporary art, thus finds itself at the center of a debate where artistic creation, diplomacy, and war are intertwined.
