Israel’s Artist Reportedly Pressured Venice Biennale Before Jury’s Resignation

According to multiple media reports, artist Belu-Simion Fainaru, Israel’s representative at the recently opened Venice Biennale, put pressure on the exhibition’s organizers before the show’s jury abruptly resigned last week.

When that five-person jury quit, it did not state its reason for doing so. But prior to departing the Biennale, the jury, which been charged with selecting the winners of the Biennale’s Golden Lions, said that it would not consider nations who were charged with crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court. That would have applied to Israel and Russia, both of which are showing at the Biennale.

Last week, the Italian news agency Adnkronos ran two reports about what it said precipitated the jury resignation, one of which featured news that Fainaru had reportedly alleged “racial discrimination” and “antisemitism” and threatened to take his claims to the European Court of Human Rights. The Biennale then told the jury that its members could “be held personally liable for damages in the event of a dispute,” according to Adnkronos.

Hyperallergic reported on Wednesday that it had confirmed that Fainaru made threats of legal action. A Biennale spokesperson told Hyperallergic that the reports were true but declined to comment further.

The remarks reported by Adnkronos track with quotes gave the New York Times when the jury resigned. “Their decision discriminated against me on a racial basis,” Fainaru told the New York Times, adding, “I’m an artist and have equal rights, and I can’t be judged by belonging to a country or a race. I should just be judged on the quality and message of my art.”