Riga International Biennial of Contemporary Art (RIBOCA) have suspended plans for RIBOCA3, originally scheduled to launch on 10 August. The organisers cited concerns with the ‘heritage of our executive members’ and ‘rekindle[d] tensions of an occupied past’ in a statement seen by ArtReview.
‘Despite our engagement with the local cultural community over the past 7 years and efforts to revise our funding structure after the war commenced,’ the organisers explained, ‘it appears that the heritage of our executive members, which includes Russian among Lithuanian and Latvian nationalities, is something too significant to overcome as the Russian attack on Ukraine rekindles tensions of an occupied past.’
‘We have been forced to confront the difficult reality that what we are providing may simply be inappropriate or unwanted in these challenging times, no matter how benevolent our intentions may be. Furthermore, in the best interests of our team and artists’ wellbeing, we have decided to pause our efforts.’
The exhibition’s third edition was initially slated to open on 15 July 2022, titled Exercises in Respect and curated by René Block, but was postponed with organisers citing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine: ‘to envision working towards an exhibition that was supposed to be a vast celebration of art, respect and togetherness feels inconceivable whilst heinous crimes are still being committed in Ukraine.’
The organisers reinforced their condemnation of Russia’s attack on Ukraine and ‘stand united with everyone who calls for an immediate end of the war’.
It is unclear what RIBOCA plans to do next.
