Andorra Ends Venice Biennale Participation Permanently Due to Costs

**Andorra's Culture Ministry has ruled out any return to the Venice Biennale, either independently or in partnership with San Marino, at least in the medium term.**

The decision, finalized by the ministry last autumn and endorsed by the government, stems primarily from budgetary constraints. Each participation cycle cost around €500,000, spread over two fiscal years—a sum deemed excessive amid pressing needs like social housing, according to Culture Director Joan-Marc Joval.

This ends a prolonged period of uncertainty that began with the pandemic. Andorra skipped the 2021 edition, postponed to 2022, as recovery efforts took precedence. The country did not feature in 2022 or 2024, and Joval had already dismissed involvement in 2026. The project, launched with high hopes in 2011 after preparations started in 2009, is now permanently shelved.

Initial enthusiasm waned over time. A 2009 call for artists drew about 30 applicants for Andorra's national pavilion—a contrast to individual entries at events like Kassel or ARCO. Subsequent rounds saw declining interest: 22 candidates in 2013, 12 in 2015, seven in 2017, and just four in 2019. The ministry adjusted selection rules to revive engagement, but to no avail.

Contributing factors included the lack of artist remuneration until 2017, when a €20,000 grant covering salary and production costs was introduced—possibly too late. Critics also faulted the open competition format, which pitted artists against peers in a high-stakes contest. A 2019 reform proposed appointing a commissioner to select and collaborate with an artist, potentially via external, co-curated, or mixed panels, but it was never implemented.

The six-year hesitation eroded momentum. Artists consulted by the ministry urged a swift return under the new model, yet delays prevailed. Public disconnection grew alongside fading artist interest, with the ministry blamed for failing to build a national contemporary art collection from the nine Biennale projects.

Those works—ranging from Francisco Sánchez and Helena Guàrdia's *L'efímer i l'eter* and *Ciutat flotant* (2011) to Philippe Shangti's *Future is Now* (2019)—remain largely inaccessible. Some, like Javier Balmaseda's *Fixats en la contemporaneïtat*, are not even state-owned; others, such as Eve Ariza's *Murmuris*, were never exhibited locally. Opportunities for domestic display or international touring were missed, despite alternatives like the Rosaleda lobby.

Early editions featured multiple artists (two or three), diluting resources amid a limited pool of creators able to compete at Venice's level—a structural challenge for Andorra. The 2017 shift to single projects came too late.

A final blow came in the 2019 selection: artist Ahmed Keshta was asked to withdraw with promises for 2021, only for the pandemic to derail plans. His public revelation of the incident irreparably damaged credibility, sealing the project's fate after six years of decline.