Artist boycott of Venice Biennale flagged as fury grows

Australia faces the grim prospect of not being represented at the Venice Biennale in 2026 as pressure builds on Creative Australia to reinstate Khaled Sabsabi, whose invitation was sensationally rescinded.

Adding to the intrigue, board member Lindy Lee broke her silence on Sunday to shed some light on why she had resigned from the board that had voted “unanimously” to sack Sabsabi and curator Michael Dagostino.

Artist Lee said she “could not live with the level of violation I felt against one of my core values, that the artist’s voice must never be silenced”.

Artist Khaled Sabsabi (right) and curator Michael Dagostino were dropped as Australia’s entrant to the 2026 Venice Biennale.Credit: Steven Siewert

A snap meeting of the agency’s board was called on Thursday evening to reconsider the artistic teams’ invitation after Coalition questions in the Senate about the artist’s 2006 video rendering of the New York 9/11 attacks, called Thank You Very Much, and a 2007 work depicting former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.

Neither the artist nor the program director were present for the decision, which has provoked several resignations. International ambassador and philanthropist Simon Mordant, director of visual arts Mikala Tai and program manager of five years Tahmina Maskinyar all stepped down.

Lee attended the meeting but quit the board on Friday night.

Federal Arts Minister Tony Burke spoke to senior figures at Creative Australia on Thursday, according to sources familiar with the matter not authorised to speak publicly.

But Burke denied he directed the board to revoke its invitation, thereby buckling to a campaign by the Murdoch media.

In a statement, Lee said the board’s decision was made in “good faith” but “nobody except those involved can ever know how fraught and heartbreaking that meeting was”.

“In no direction was there anywhere to breathe,” she said. “I’m bound to confidentiality, so I cannot speak of these things.”

However, Lee said she “could not live with the level of violation I felt against one of my core values, that the artist’s voice must never be silenced”.

“Artists make visible all the invisible things that make us. It is the only thing we have to reflect on ourselves,” Lee said.

Calls are mounting among Australian artists to reject any attempt by the board to replace the duo, opening the way for the pavilion to be dark at Venice.

No artist of any conscience should accept the show in place of Khaled Sabsabi, fellow western Sydney artist Garry Trinh said in a social media post.

In an open letter to the board, the five other shortlisted entrants called for Creative Australia to reinstate Sabsabi, whose proposal was “selected by industry-led experts through a rigorous and professionally independent open-call process”. None are expected to step up in Sabsabi’s stead.

Less than one year ago, Creative Australia was hailing the genius and bold artistic vision of Australian representative Archie Moore at the Venice Biennale. Moore received a Gold Lion, the equivalent of an Olympic medal, for a moving chalked history of his ancestry.

Australia has formally participated in the event since 1958.

The Creative Australia board was aware that Sabsabi’s selection might be controversial given events in the Middle East. He migrated to Australia with his family from Lebanon during that country’s civil war and has taken strong political positions on the Gaza conflict. Sabsabi and Dagostino had promised an installation that united and did not divide.

Must-see movies, interviews and all the latest from the world of film delivered to your inbox. Sign up for our Screening Room newsletter.