On March 4, the organizers of the Venice Biennale officially announced this year’s participants. Russia’s participation has been formally approved. Artist, essayist and writer Kateryna Margolis wrote in a Facebook post, citing publicly available information from the organizers, about the individuals behind the Russian project.
As LB.ua reported earlier, the biennale’s press service has declined to comment. The Russian project is titled “The Tree Is Rooted in the Sky.” At the same time, criticism is already emerging in professional circles regarding the symbolism and context of this participation amid Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine.
According to open sources, the commissioner of the Russian pavilion is Anastasia Karneyeva — daughter of Nikolai Volobuyev, Deputy Director General of the state corporation Rostec.
Nikolai Volobuyev has served as Deputy CEO of Rostec since 2007. Prior to that, he was Deputy Head of Russia’s Federal Customs Service and Director for Special Assignments at Rosoboronexport. From 1975 to 2004, he served in the structures of the USSR KGB and later the Russian FSB.
Anastasia Karneyeva herself was previously known as the owner of the Smart Art auction business, as well as the partner of Ekaterina Vinokurova — daughter of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Russia pavilion’s participation in one of the world’s most prestigious art forums already raises questions about the ties of its representatives to Russian state and security structures. This marks Russia’s first return to Venice since 2022.
LB.ua has sent inquiries to the Ministry of Culture and the Ukrainian Embassy in Italy. The Ministry of Culture responded that it is preparing a joint statement and action plan with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which will be announced soon. A comment from the Ukrainian Embassy in Italy is still pending.