From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, April 16, 2024
Days before opening, Israeli artist shutters her Venice Biennale exhibition in solidarity with hostages
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleJessica Steinberg, The Times of Israel's culture and lifestyles editor, covers the Sabra scene from south to north and back to the center
After months of pro-Palestinian activists trying to convince the Venice Biennale to ban Israel from the international art exhibition, participating Israeli artist Ruth Patir today turns the tables and locks the doors to her own exhibition, on the first preview day for media and art world professionals. The event opens officially on April 20.
“The artist and curators of the Israeli pavilion will open the exhibition when a cease-fire and hostage release agreement is reached,” reads a sign the Israeli team says it plans to tape to the door of the pavilion, taking a stance in solidarity with the hostages. The team is made up of Israeli artist Patir, along with her curators, Mira Lapidot and Tamar Margalit.
“As an artist and educator, I firmly object to cultural boycott, but I have a significant difficulty in presenting a project that speaks about the vulnerability of life in a time of unfathomed disregard for it,” says Patir.
The Times of Israel Community.