"Performance regarding the Venice issue" by Dagnini was held at the General Staff Building during the 8th Cultural Forum . At the conclusion of the discussion about the 58th Venice Biennale, a creature resembling a revived sculpture ran onto the atrium stage. The caught "golden lion" was taken to the Kabakov's hall. Next to "The Wagon" installation by Kabakov, a pedestal surrounded by a plastic swamp "overgrown" with Louis Vuitton bags has been already prepared for the lion. The performance touches on the problem of authenticity and the original, which is relevant to the modern world of fake news. The theme echoes the problems of the Venice Biennale, as well as the issue of the originality of contemporary art in general. The image of a lion was seen as a reference to the Biennale and its main prize, the statuette of the Festival and the Golden lion of San Marco, while at the same time to all the statues of lions symbolizing imperial authority.

Anastasiya Skvortsova