The Tamesis
In a statement released on January 10, South Africa’s Department of Sport, Arts and Culture denied a review of its 2026 Venice Biennale pavilion. It is reported art news Last week, the Culture Ministry canceled plans to design an artwork for the museum on December 2.
Last November, a selection committee was appointed by the non-profit organization Art periodic (the management, production and fundraising partner of the South African pavilion), which selected a work by South African artist Gabrielle Goliath as an entry for the South African Biennale. The proposed work, curated by Ingrid Masondo, will be the latest in Goliath’s “Elegy” series, which began in 2015 as a performance about sexual assault and femicide within and outside South Africa.
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as described Everyday maverickNew work from South African publication Elegy explores the killing of women and queer people by German troops in South Africa in the early 20th century, as well as the killing of women by German troops during the genocide in Namibia. The last part is dedicated to the memory of Palestinian poet Hiba Abu Nada, who was killed along with her son in an Israeli airstrike in October 2023.
according to MaverickSouth Africa’s culture minister, Gayton McKenzie, withdrew the submission after claiming in a letter to the selection committee that the work was “highly divisive in nature and relevant to ongoing and widely polarizing international conflicts.” On January 8, the selection committee issued a response protesting the department’s decision.
A new statement signed by McKenzie said the decision was not censorship but a safeguard against foreign interference in South African politics. Part of it reads: “[W]When it was brought to my attention that a foreign country had allegedly conducted [sic] In order to fund the exhibition in South Africa, Art Journal expressed concern and clarified that it was their understanding that the country had actually committed to purchasing the art in question after the Biennale ended. Still, it raises alarm as South African platforms are allegedly being used as proxies by foreign powers to support geopolitical messages about Israel’s actions in Gaza. ”
The Ministry of Sports, Arts and Culture has yet to respond art newsThe investigation concerns the origin of the allegations, the foreign entity involved, or how that entity directly or indirectly interfered with the pavilion’s funding. For its part, Art Periodic said on its website that it “no longer has the authority to continue the project or make any related announcements.”
Participating countries will submit their final plans for this year’s Venice Biennale by January 10.
