Venice has a Russia and Israel problem

‘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 some things we could fix) in the presence of other human beings, our friends at the European Cultural Foundation have a great list of events, from film screenings to family days out. Find your nearest at europeday.eu . ! DON’T MISS OUR INAUGURAL BOOK CLUB PODCAST: You still have a week to read Vincenzo Latronico’s pleasingly short ‘Perfection’, although we’re confident you’ll still enjoy next Thursday’s conversation about possibly the Berlin novel of our time even if you’ve never heard of it. Book nerds may want to sign up to support the podcast this week, because we’ll be bringing you a longer version of the conversation – brought to you in collaboration with the European Review of Books – on Patreon. Speaking of bonus content: you’ll find some extra snippets of our conversation with Arnold van Bruggen at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon.com/europeanspodcast ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (or in your inbox if you

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Venice has a Russia and Israel problem is an episode from The Europeans by Katy Lee and Dominic Kraemer.

This episode is 55:18 long.

This episode was published on May 7, 2026.

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