In a studio in west Warsaw, former political prisoners cut golden wheat stems to 90cm lengths, preparing them for shipment to the Venice Biennale. A giant ball of banned books from Belarus—including Harry Potter and works by Nobel laureate Svetlana Alexievich—rests on a bulldozer claw. Surveillance cameras are attached to an iron crucifix amid laughter, organ music, and grinding tools.
A Groundbreaking Installation
This is Official. Unofficial. Belarus., the first major art project by Belarus Free Theatre (BFT). Unlike their previous theatrical works, this installation involves no performance but instead features contributions from painters, sculptors, composers, and renowned chef Rasmus Munk. Munk has created a communion wafer that tastes of detention under authoritarian rule, while a commissioned scent evokes a freshly dug grave in the Belarus countryside.
The Visionaries Behind the Project
BFT co-founders Natalia Kaliada and Nicolai Khalezin, based in London since 2011, have produced challenging political theatre for years. However, they never dreamed of staging an exhibition. Khalezin, a former curator, wanted to represent Belarus at Venice decades ago but was restricted by government-approved artists. Their daughter Daniella Kaliada, now 26, masterminded this project, wrangling artists older and more stubborn than herself.
Daniella was first interrogated by the Belarusian KGB at age eight. She vividly recalls the day her mother was arrested in 2010: masked men at the door, hours of ringing and barking, then deafening silence. Natalia was detained for 20 hours and threatened with rape. She describes the numbness of losing control, while friends were jailed for months or years, and her godmother's husband was kidnapped and killed.
Capturing the Experience of Repression
The installation aims to capture both the numbness of the detained and the fear of those left behind. It also addresses digital curbs on personal freedoms. Daniella notes that while Belarus is unique, surveillance is a universal concern. Her mother adds that even leaving your phone behind is futile now, as drones monitor everything.
Their Venice installation is a collateral event at the Chiesa di San Giovanni Evangelista, not an official pavilion, because pavilions require ministry approval. This year, Russia has an official pavilion for the first time since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Natalia calls this a failure of international law, as the pavilion is curated by Anastasia Karneeva, whose father is an executive at Russia's largest defense contractor. The Kaliadas hope the pavilion will become a focus for protest and prompt a review of the biennale's constitution.
Artistic Contributions
Composer Olga Podgaiskaya, whose husband was kidnapped and tortured in Belarus, has created a 20-minute organ piece of alarms, crescendos, and silences. She hopes it reminds people that evil lives close by and might even heal the KGB agents watching them. Painter Sergey Grinevich, who left Belarus and may never return, works on canvases depicting naked figures and masked men reminiscent of Daniella's peephole view. He also paints a wheat field that will accompany a 3D version made from stacked stems.
Khalezin's ball of banned books symbolizes the Sisyphus story: books are shredded and buried in Belarus. He hosts a YouTube cookery show urging viewers to watch, then delete and unsubscribe. Rasmus Munk's communion wafer, flavored with toothache plant for a numbing sensation, is colored grey like Belarusian army uniforms.
Youth and Determination
Natalia admits she questioned her daughter's decision to curate such a major pavilion, but Daniella insisted that younger generations must stand up. The project has been largely funded anonymously by Belarusian businesses, proving the power of the exile community. Natalia reflects that the fear instilled by authoritarianism takes years to ebb; Daniella only recently began to shed the feeling that a knock on the door means arrest.
Official. Unofficial. Belarus. runs at Chiesa di San Giovanni Evangelista at the Venice Biennale from 9 May to 22 November.
