« No art washing ! » : à la Biennale de Venise, près de 3 000 manifestants réunis pour dénoncer la présence du pavillon israélien

On May 8, 2026, nearly 3,000 protesters gathered in Venice to demonstrate against the presence of the Israeli pavilion at the Venice Biennale. Led by the collective Art Not Genocide Alliance (Anga), the crowd included artists, curators, and cultural workers who chanted slogans such as "Stop al Padiglione genocidio" and called for a strike on the closing day of the professional previews. Dozens of national pavilions, including those of France, Belgium, Poland, Spain, the United Kingdom, Lebanon, and Ukraine, closed in solidarity. The protest followed a letter sent by Anga in March demanding Israel's exclusion, which went unanswered, and the self-dissolution of the awards jury on April 30 over the presence of both Israel and Russia.

Dozens of Pavilions Close During Strike at 61st Venice Biennale

On May 8, 2026, a 24-hour strike organized by the Art Not Genocide Alliance (ANGA) and several Italian activist groups brought the 61st Venice Biennale to a standstill. Approximately 27 of the 100 national pavilions closed fully or partially in solidarity with protesters demanding Israel’s exclusion from the event, including those of Austria, Belgium, France, Great Britain, Japan, South Korea, and Ukraine. Over 3,500 people marched through Venice, with speakers including artist Gabrielle Goliath and curator Caroline Dumalin. The main exhibition, "In Minor Keys," curated by the late Koyo Kouoh, closed by late afternoon, and riot police were stationed outside the Arsenale. The Israeli pavilion, already shuttered during previews, remained closed.

There is an absent pavilion at the 2026 Venice Art Biennale that no one has talked about: Venezuela

C’è un padiglione assente alla Biennale d’Arte di Venezia 2026 di cui nessuno ha parlato: il Venezuela

The Venezuelan pavilion at the 2026 Venice Art Biennale remains closed, an absence that has gone largely unnoticed amid other controversies surrounding the Russian, Israeli, South African, and Iranian pavilions. Designed by architect Carlo Scarpa and built between 1953 and 1956, the pavilion now displays a trilingual sign stating it will "rise again soon," reflecting the country's collapse after the kidnapping and imprisonment of President Nicolás Maduro by the United States and the installation of a fragile pro-American interim government.