ROME -- The Israeli artist and curator, Ruth Patir, has said the Israel pavilion at the 60th Venice Biennale will remain closed until “a ceasefire and hostage release agreement is reached.” The exhibition, which should have opened on Tuesday morning, instead displayed a sign stating the team’s decision, and was guarded by Italian soldiers.
Patir explained, “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.”