Episode
Venice has a Russia and Israel problem
- Published
- May 7, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 3318
- Processing state
not_requested- Canonical source
- https://europeanspodcast.com
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Summary
‘Art and politics can totally be separated!’ said no one ever – apart from the organisers of the Venice Biennale, a.k.a. the Olympics of the art world. This week we’re diving into the fallout from the Biennale’s decision to allow both Russia and Israel to participate. We’re also looking at a case study of why it’s so problematic to welcome Moscow to events that showcase its (Kremlin-approved) cultural offerings: the film Mr Nobody Against Putin, whose co-director Pavel Talankin, we are happy to report, has now happily been reunited with his mislaid Oscar. A round of applause for Lufthansa! It’s taken us many years to get over our bitterness that there are some other kids on the block called The Europeans , but since it’s Europe Day this Saturday, we’ve decided to bury the hatchet. This week we’re delighted to be joined by the Dutch writer Arnold van Bruggen, one half of the photo-documentary project The Europeans . Along with the photographer Rob Hornstra, Arnold is spending the decade chronicling life around a continent that, as he puts it, is being rocked by a perfect storm of political, social and environmental changes. We spoke to Arnold about the latest chapter of the project, in which they got to know the migrant workers who keep southern Spain’s giant greenhouse region running. This interview is brought to you in partnership with the European Cultural Foundation . This week’s Inspiration Station recommendations are Repro Uncensored , which is doing fine work highlighting a wave of shutdowns of queer Instagram accounts, and Rotraut Susanne Berner ’s seasonal Wimmelbilderbücher for kids. EUROPE DAY: How’s your prep going? Got your Rösti at the ready? If you’d like to spend Saturday celebrating everything that’s wonderful about this continent (and maybe discussing…