{
  "id": 5170013,
  "title": "Venice Biennale President Defends Russia Inclusion in New Interview",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/02/venice-biennale-president-defends-russia-inclusion-in-new-interview",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-02T20:29:28.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Hyperallergic",
    "slug": "hyperallergic",
    "url": "https://hyperallergic.com/venice-biennale-president-defends-russia-inclusion-in-new-interview/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In an exclusive interview with Italy's Corriere della Sera, Pietrangelo Buttafuoco, president of the Venice Biennale Foundation, defended the decision to include Russia in this year's 61st Venice Biennale, despite objections from the Italian Culture Ministry and the European Commission. The controversy surrounding Russia's participation escalated after the announcement in March, prompting calls for boycotts and an open letter demanding changes. Buttafuoco maintained that the Biennale administration firmly opposes \"any form of exclusion or censorship of culture and art,\" emphasizing his unwavering commitment to fairness and adherence to laws and regulations. He expressed that he would have made the same decision again, stating that his management of the pavilion was \"more than fair and proper to the institution I preside over.\" The Italian Culture Minister, Alessandro Giuli, requested the Biennale Foundation to furnish all correspondence with the Russian Federation to assess the pavilion's alignment with the European Union's sanctions regime. The European Commission responded by threatening to freeze the €2 million (approximately $2.3 million) cultural grant to the Foundation due to Russia's inclusion. In April, the Biennale's award jury decided to exclude Russia and Israel from consideration for the prestigious Golden Lion awards, and Giuli stated his intention to skip the Biennale's preview dates in protest of Russia's participation. Despite the backlash, Buttafuoco and the Foundation's administrators collaborated with the Russian pavilion curator in June 2025 to ensure compliance with the rules, ultimately leading to the pavilion remaining inaccessible to the public during the Biennale's exhibition period.",
  "summary": "Pietrangelo Buttafuoco said he would do “everything” again if he had to, despite the Italian Culture Ministry’s backlash and the European Commission's stripped funding.",
  "key_points": [
    "Pietrangelo Buttafuoco defends Russia's inclusion in Venice Biennale.",
    "Italian Culture Minister seeks correspondence on Russia's compliance.",
    "Award jury excludes Russia and Israel from Golden Lion awards."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}