Gabriella Goliath to exhibit ‘radical’ artwork independently in Venice after Gayton McKenzie cancels

Gabriella Goliath. Picture: Instagram/@gabriellegoliath Artist Gabriella Goliath will exhibit her Venice Biennale project independently at the 61st International Art Exhibition. This follows her unsuccessful legal bid to overturn Sports, Arts, and Culture Minister Gayton McKenzie’s decision to halt the South African pavilion’s participation at the Venice Biennale in Italy.

In January, McKenzie cancelled the pavilion, describing the work as “highly divisive”. He said the decision was based on concerns about the piece’s content in relation to an ongoing global conflict. “It would not be wise nor defensible for South Africa to support an art installation against a country currently accused of genocide while we are also fielding unjustified accusations of genocide,” he said.

“The Department of Sport, Arts and Culture cannot support such a highly divisive political narrative on what remains our platform as a country.” Goliath confirmed in a statement that her work, titled Elegy, will now be presented independently in Venice. “‘Elegy’ will sound in Venice as an independent exhibition at the Chiesa di Sant’Antonin, Castello: 5 May-31 July 2026,” she said. She described the exhibition as a response to the cancellation. “This exhibition is – for me and many others – a radical intervention of hope and community-care, surfacing in the wake of the shocking cancellation of the South African Pavilion at the 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia,” she said.