Artists, curators, and cultural workers are threatening a boycott of the 61st Venice Biennale, slated to open on May 9, 2026, over its “complicit invitation” of Israel.In an open letter sent to Biennale organizers today, October 2, the anonymous activist group Art Not Genocide Alliance (ANGA), described in an email to Hyperallergic as an international collective of artists, curators, writers, and art workers, called for “the immediate and complete exclusion” of Israel from the forthcoming iteration.“After more than 700 days of genocide and 77 years of occupation, apartheid, and ethnic cleansing, the pavilion must remain closed,” the missive reads.The letter cites the 24,000 signatories of ANGA’s previous petition opposing Israel’s participation in the 2024 Biennale, including hundreds of artists who have participated in previous Biennales. “Now, 18 months later, we reiterate the demand for the immediate and complete exclusion of Israel from the Venice Biennale,” the letter said. Last year’s Biennale was marked by protests at both the Israeli and United States pavilions. Ruth Patir, the artist selected to represent Israel at the Biennale, opted to partially close her exhibition, a move that some said did not go far enough.Flyers protesting Israel’s ongoing assault on Gaza that ANGA activists distributed outside the Israeli and US pavilionsANGA’s latest missive also takes issue with the planned relocation of the Israeli Pavilion to the historic Arsenale Complex, citing an announcement published by the Israeli Ministry of Culture in late August. The decision to establish an “alternative pavilion” for Israel, the announcement said, is due to “renovations” at its permanent site in the Giardini, the traditional location of national pavilions since 1895, where Israel sits directly next door to the United States. A floor plan and map show that Israel’s new exhibition space will be in the Sala d’Armi G, in the south section of Arsenale complex.But the authors of the petition argue that the ongoing boycott is the real reason for the pavilion relocation.“At a time when Israel continues to escalate its genocide with the destruction and ground invasion of Gaza City, following months of enforced famine, the Biennale should be ashamed to be in dialogue with the cultural representatives of the Israeli occupation,” the letter said. Israel opted out of this year’s Venice Biennale of Architecture, also claiming that the decision was due to renovations to their permanent pavilion. Then, too, critics pointed out that Israel was facing international pressure not to participate.Hyperallergic has contacted the Venice Biennale for comment.ANGA’s “Guide to Complicity” protesting Israel’s bombardments of Gaza and the Occupied Palestinian TerritoriesCalls for Israel’s exclusion from the upcoming Biennale come amid mounting global actions in support of Palestine, where the Israeli military’s ongoing assault on Gaza has killed upwards of 65,000 people and wounded more than 167,000. Multiple human rights organizations and a United Nations commission have classified the attacks as a genocide. This morning, Israeli forces reportedly boarded and detained dozens of crew members aboard the international civilian-led Global Sumud Flotilla who were attempting to break Israel’s naval blockade and deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza. Passengers aboard the convoy include humanitarian activist Greta Thunberg; Nkosi Zwelivelile Mandela, a grandson of anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela; and Artists Against Apartheid members Carsie Blanton and Leila Hegazy.ANGA said in its letter today that the Biennale has until 15 October to respond to its letter before it will “leverage the movement to ensure maximum reputational and economic consequences for the Biennale.”