Venice Biennale 2022: Ukraine's Pavilion on hold | Russian Pavilion: Curator & Artists withdraw

Ukraine's Pavillion on hold

Artist Pavlo Makov and curators Lizaveta German, Maria Lanko, Borys Filonenko stated on the pavilion's twitter account that "Presently, we are not able to continue working on the project of the pavilion due to the danger to our lives," but they are determined to represent Ukraine at the 59th Art Exhibition the way it deserves to be represented.
In a dramatic appeal they continue: "We call for the international artistic community to use all our impact in order to stop the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Guns may hurt our bodies, but culture changes our minds. This war is a clash of civilizations—a free and civilized world is attacked by the barbarian and aggressive one. If we continue being passive observers of the situation, we will lose everything we work for and all the heritage of our predecessors—art, love, freedom of expression and the ability to create. Stand with Ukraine in this challenging time."
Complete statement

On Sunday, 27 Feb. 2022, Russian artists Alexandra Sukhareva and Kirill Savchenkov stated in a joint social media posting that they withdraw from the Russian Pavilion, declaring: "There is no place for art when civilians are dying under the fire of missiles, when citizens of Ukraine are hiding in shelters when Russian protesters are getting silenced."

Curator Raimundas Malašauskas also resigned, writing on his account: "I cannot advance on working on this project in light of Russia’s military invasion and bombing of Ukraine. This war is politically and emotionally unbearable. As you know, I was born and formed in Lithuania when it was part of the Soviet Union. I have lived through the Soviet Union’s dissolution in 1989, and have witnessed and enjoyed my country’s development ever since. The idea of going back to or forward with living under a Russian or any other empire is simply intolerable."

Following these declarations, the organizers of the Russian Pavilion confirmed succinctly that "consequently the Russian Pavilion will remain closed."

In an official statement on 25 February 2022, La Biennale di Venezia declared: "La Biennale di Venezia, a place where all peoples meet in art and culture, stands by all those who are suffering as a result of the Russian attack on Ukraine.
We invoke peace and firmly reject all forms of warfare and violence, confirming that La Biennale remains a place of dialogue between institutions, artists and citizens of every country, language, ethnicity and religion."
Full statement

From: Universes in Universe