Tobias Rehberger's Venice Biennale Bar Demolished After 17 Years, Artist Criticizes Process

The Venice Biennale dismantled Tobias Rehberger's 2009 artwork 'Was du liebst, bringt dich auch zum Weinen,' a functional café in the Giardini, on December 1, 2024, to make way for a reinstallation by architects Labics. Rehberger, who created the Golden Lion-winning piece for the 53rd Biennale under director Daniel Birnbaum, was notified on November 12, 2024. He expressed disappointment not with the removal itself—acknowledging the work's deteriorated state and the institution's legal rights—but with the short notice and the Biennale's refusal to allow him to create a new artistic project documenting its demolition with photographer Elger Esser. Rehberger had secured a sponsor for restoration, but the Biennale declined. The incident raises questions about public art and institutional communication.