Venice Biennale Sanctions

Ukraine just sanctioned five people tied to Russia’s pavilion at the 2026 Venice Biennale, less than a month before the exhibition opens in Venice on May 9. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy put the measures into force under decree No. 305/2026 after a National Security and Defense Council decision dated April 9. (president.gov.ua, interfax.com.ua) This is not a fringe art fair. The 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia runs from May 9 to November 22, 2026, with preview days on May 6, 7, and 8, and it is one of the biggest stages in global contemporary art. (labiennale.org) Ukraine says the five sanctioned figures were not just artists passing through. The president’s office said they “justify aggression” and spread Russian propaganda at international events, and said all five are connected to Russia’s participation in this year’s Biennale. (president.gov.ua, interfax.com.ua) One of the names is Anastasia Karneeva, who has been commissioner of the Russian pavilion since 2021 and is set to represent Russia again in 2026. Interfax reported that Ukrainian officials also highlighted her family tie to a sanctioned deputy head of Rostec, the Russian state defense conglomerate. (interfax.com.ua, theartnewspaper.com) Another is Mikhail Shvydkoy, the Kremlin’s special representative for international cultural cooperation and a former Russian culture minister. He is also the official who confirmed in March that Russia’s pavilion would reopen after sitting out the last two Venice Biennale editions. (interfax.com.ua, artnews.com, russiancouncil.ru) The other three names are performer Valeria Oleynik, singer Ilya Tatakov, and vocalist Artem Nikolaev. Interfax said Ukraine’s case against them includes appearances in occupied Crimea after 2014, participation in propaganda work in occupied parts of Donetsk region, and propaganda events in Crimea in 2025. (interfax.com.ua, kyivpost.com) The fight over this pavilion started before the sanctions. In February 2022, Russian artists Kirill Savchenkov and Alexandra Sukhareva and Lithuanian curator Raimundas Malašauskas withdrew from the Russian pavilion after Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and the pavilion stayed closed that year. (artnews.com) In 2024, Russia still did not mount its own national presentation and handed the Giardini pavilion to Bolivia for that edition. In 2026, Russia is back on the Biennale calendar, and La Biennale says there will be 99 national participations in this year’s show. (artnews.com, labiennale.org) Shvydkoy described the Russian project as “The Tree is Rooted in the Sky” and said it would involve more than 50 young musicians, poets, and philosophers from Russia and other countries. He also framed the reopening as proof that attempts to isolate Russian culture had failed. (artnews.com) That argument has run straight into European political backlash. In late March, members of the European Parliament called on the European Commission to suspend European Union funding for the Biennale over Russia’s planned participation. (theartnewspaper.com) Ukraine’s sanctions turn that backlash into state policy. Vladyslav Vlasiuk, Zelenskyy’s sanctions adviser, said Russia’s Venice presence is “not about culture” but about using an international platform to legitimize aggression, and Ukraine said it will now give partners the information needed to match the sanctions in their own jurisdictions. (interfax.com.ua)