VENICE, Italy — Feminist activists disrupted the opening of Russia’s pavilion at the Venice Biennale art exhibition Wednesday, with members of Pussy Riot and Ukrainian group FEMEN staging a dramatic protest against the country’s participation.
The demonstrators stormed the venue in the Giardini exhibition space while shouting slogans including “Russia’s art is blood” and “Disobey,” creating a spectacle with pink, blue and yellow smoke while wearing pink face coverings. Italian authorities intervened to secure the entrance as protesters successfully prevented access to the Russian exhibit for approximately half an hour.
Nadya Tolokonnikova, who founded Pussy Riot, argued that authentic Russian artistic expression should come from political prisoners facing imprisonment on what she called “mostly ridiculous charges.”
“Those people make art, and I want that art to represent Russia, because they represent the real face of Russia,” she stated.
The decision to include Russia in this year’s Biennale — the first since Moscow’s comprehensive military assault on Ukraine began in 2022 — has resulted in significant financial consequences, with the European Union withdrawing 2 million euros ($2.5 million) in support for the contemporary art festival.
In a dramatic show of opposition last week, the panel responsible for selecting Golden Lion award recipients stepped down rather than participate in judging countries facing International Criminal Court investigations for human rights violations, effectively targeting both Russia and Israel.
The Russian exhibition, which showcases musical performances in a lower-level space, will only remain accessible during the preview week leading up to the Biennale’s official May 9 launch date.
Tolokonnikova revealed that attempts to communicate with festival leadership were unsuccessful, forcing her to use false identification to gain entry to the Giardini complex.
While Biennale officials have justified Russia’s inclusion by citing their policy of welcoming any nation maintaining diplomatic ties with Italy, the Italian government in Rome has publicly criticized this stance despite recognizing the festival’s autonomous decision-making authority.
