On May 9, ahead of the 61st Venice Biennale’s public opening, dozens of artists declined consideration for the newly established Visitor Lions—a public-vote award introduced in place of the traditional jury-selected Golden Lions. 

Following the jury’s resignation on April 30, widely seen as a response to the inclusion of the Russian and Israeli pavilions, the Biennale transferred voting authority for the art world’s most prestigious prize to the public. 

Nearly half of the artists featured in Koyo Kouoh’s exhibition “In Minor Keys” at the Central Pavilion, as well as artists, curators, and exhibition staff from 22 national pavilions, signed a statement published on e-flux withdrawing from consideration for the award, declaring: “We do so in solidarity with the resignation of the jury selected by Koyo Kouoh.”

Signatories from the Central Pavilion:

Pio Abad
Fabrice Aragno
arms ache avid aeon
Sammy Baloji
Éric Baudelaire
Sabian Baumann
Nancy Brooks Brody Estate
BuBu de la Madeleine
Carolina Caycedo
Annalee Davis
Bonnie Devine
Nolan Oswald Dennis
rana elnemr
Joy Episalla
Rachel Fallon
Sofía Gallisá Muriente
Joana Hadjithomas & Khalil Joreige
Sohrab Hura
Mohammed Joha
fierce pussy
Alfredo Jaar
Michael Joo
Nina Katchadourian
Guadalupe Maravilla
Natalia Lassalle-Morillo
Florence Lazar
Zoe Leonard
Alice Maher
Sally Mizrachi
Avi Mograbi & Avital Barak
Tuan Andrew Nguyen
Otobong Nkanga
Hagar Ophir
Uriel Orlow
Alan Phelan
Walid Raad
Mohammed Z. Rahman
Tabita Rezaire
Guadalupe Rosales
Yo-E Ryou
Rose Salane
Carrie Schneider
Hala Schoukair
Berni Searle
Yoshiko Shimada
Himali Singh Soin & David Soin Tappeser
Cauleen Smith
Vera Tamari
Jo-ey Tang
Carrie Yamaoka
Raed Yassin
Thania Petersen
Laurie Anderson
Leonard Pongo

Signatories from national pavilions:

Belgium: Miet Warlop (artist); Caroline Dumalin (curator); team
Luxembourg: Aline Bouvy (artist); Stilbé Schroeder (curator)
France: Yto Barrada (artist)
Slovenia: Nonument Group (Neja Tomšič, Martin Bricelj Baraga, Nika Grabar, Miloš Kosec) (artist collective); Nataša Petrešin-Bachelez (curator)
Latvia: MAREUNROL’S, Bruno Birmanis (artists); team
Lithuania: Egle Budvytyte (artist); Louise O’Kelly (curator)
Switzerland: Gianmaria Andreetta, Luca Beeler, Miriam Laura Leonardi, Lithic Alliance, Yul Tomatala, Nina Wakeford (artists)
Spain: Oriol Vilanova (artist)
The Netherlands: Dries Verhoeven (artist); Rieke Vos (curator)
Poland: Bogna Burska, Daniel Kotowski (artists); Ewa Chomicka, Jolanta Woszczenko (curators)
Ecuador: Boloh Miranda, Tatiana Lopez, Sani Montahuano, Mukutsawa Montahuano, Enoc Merino, Tawna Collective (artists)
Ireland: Isabel Nolan (artist); Georgina Jackson (curator); Cian O’Brien (producer)
Kosovo: Brilant Milazimi (artist)
Finland: Juha Huuskonen (commissioner)
Czech Republic and Slovakia: Jakub Jansa, Selmeci Kocka Jusko (artists); Peter Sit (curator)
Cyprus: Marina Xenofontos (artist)
Albania: Genti Korini (artist)
UAE: Farah Al Qasimi (artist)
Türkiye: Nilbar Güreş (artist); Başak Doğa Temür (curator) 
Grenada: All artists in group show; Susan Mains (commissioner) 
Iceland: Ásta Fanney Sigurðardóttir (artist)
Moldova: Pavel Brăila (artist); Adelina Luft (curator)

Emmanuelle Richter is an editorial intern at ArtAsiaPacific.