Around 9,000 people, including artists, curators and museum directors have signed an online petition calling for Israel to be excluded from this year’s Venice Biennale art fair often referred to as the “Olympics of the art world” amid the ongoing war in Gaza.
What is the petition about?
The appeal was made by a group called Art Not Genocide Alliance (ANGA) publishing an open letter against Israel’s participation in the Biennale accusing the country of committing “genocide” in Gaza.
Israel has been facing mounting criticism of its military operation in Gaza after the October 7 attack by Palestinian militant group Hamas in southern Israel. Hamas’ attack led to the deaths of 1,200 people and they also took 253 hostages, according to Israeli officials.
Meanwhile, Israel, which has since launched a military operation in Gaza has killed nearly 30,000 people in the Palestinian enclave, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
Israel has repeatedly denied that its actions in Gaza amount to “genocide,” as it continues to garner international criticism, including from the art world.
“Any official representation of Israel on the international cultural stage is an endorsement of its policies and of the genocide in Gaza,” said the ANGA petition, which has been signed by thousands of artists who have participated in the Biennales previously or are expected to take part this year.
“The Biennale is platforming a genocidal apartheid state. No death in Venice. No business as usual,” the statement added.
The Biennale, one of the most prominent events in the international art calendar, is scheduled to take place between April 20 and November 24.
The ANGA also accused the Venice Biennale of a “double standard” as it had previously banned South Africa over its apartheid policy and even excluded Russia after it launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, but has not criticised Israel for its actions.
Israel has a national pavilion in the Venice Giardini or Giardini della Biennale which has hosted the art festival since the first edition in 1895. This year’s edition, “Foreigners Everywhere” is set to host pavilions from 90 countries. Israel will reportedly be represented by artist Ruth Patir.
Italy slams the appeal
Italian Culture Minister Gennaro Sangiuliano said that the appeal was “unacceptable” and a “shameful…diktat of those who believe they are the custodians of truth, and with arrogance and hatred, think they can threaten freedom of thought and creative expression.”
Speaking about the statement, Sangiuliano also said that Israel “not only has the right to express its art, but also the duty to bear witness to its people” after being attacked by “merciless terrorists”.
There was no immediate response from the organisers of the Venice Biennale.
(With inputs from agencies)
