Iran’s tradition ministry has denied it has withdrawn from the 2026 Venice Biennale, which opened on 9 Might, and says it’s nonetheless decided to participate, even when not for the complete period.
Final week, the Biennale printed a short assertion saying that “with regard to the Nationwide Participations within the 61st Worldwide Artwork Exhibition, In Minor Keys by Koyo Kouoh (9 Might-22 November), it has been introduced that the Islamic Republic of Iran is not going to take part,” with out offering a purpose. Additional makes an attempt by The Artwork Newspaper to acquire clarification had been met with the identical response.
“We neither submitted a withdrawal letter nor said that we’d not attend. Relatively, we stated we’d take part and requested extra time,” stated Aydin Mahdizadeh Tehrani, the director-general of visible arts at Iran’s ministry of tradition and Islamic steerage (MCIG) and the nation’s pavilion commissioner, in feedback to the Iran College students Information Company (ISNA) on Tuesday (12 Might).
“In preliminary discussions there was no opposition to this, and so they [the Biennale] didn’t say that granting time was not possible. Actually, they cooperated effectively—greater than anticipated.”
Mahdizadeh Tehrani stated the Biennale’s choice to announce Iran’s absence days earlier than the opening probably displays its inner procedures. He added that organisers had required affirmation by the top of March, when the US-Israel conflict with Iran was ongoing and the state of affairs remained extremely unsure. He stated the conflict performed a serious function in stopping a remaining settlement on participation within the Biennale, however that even beforehand a sequence of “main challenges”, together with political and financial points, had affected planning. He additionally cited a pointy change in foreign money values that pushed projected prices to 3 occasions the allotted finances, making full participation over the Biennale’s seven-month period unfeasible. Iran proposed a shorter participation interval of “two or three months”, which was rejected by organisers, he stated.
Within the ISNA interview, Mahdizadeh Tehrani stated that MCIG despatched a letter to the organisers on 10 Might stating “that regardless of the opening having taken place and even when participation within the competitors [Golden Lion awards] is not doable, we nonetheless insist that the Iranian pavilion be opened.”
He added that intervention from Iran’s overseas ministry, which “explicitly confused how necessary Iran’s participation in Venice is”, has renewed efforts to safe a presence at this yr’s occasion.
“We’re presently awaiting the ultimate response [from the Biennale], and I anticipate we are going to obtain a definitive reply inside the subsequent couple of days,” Mahdizadeh Tehrani says. “Our intention and plan are to make sure that we’re current in Venice over the summer season.”
The Artwork Newspaper has contacted the Venice Biennale and MCIG for remark.
The proposed undertaking by Iran could be a collective, technology-driven presentation incorporating “various viewpoints”, Mahdizadeh Tehrani stated. “At current, we’re primarily ready for the ultimate timeline to be confirmed. Our expectation is to have round two months,” he added.
He added that the state of affairs has underscored the necessity for a long-term technique for Iran’s presence on the Biennale, together with proposals for a everlasting secretariat and governing construction to assist sustained participation. “Our intention is for participation in Venice to not stay an occasional undertaking, however to change into a part of the workplace’s established features and providers, with its personal outlined and unbiased finances.”
Iran made its debut on the Biennale in 1956, below the Pahlavi regime (1925-1975), however its attendance till the 1979 Islamic Revolution was sporadic. After a long time of absence, Iran returned in 2003, with participation remaining intermittent till 2015, when it grew to become extra constant.
