The artists Lina Lapelyte, Vaiva Grainyte, and Rugile Barzdziukaite won the Golden Lion for best national participation at the Biennale with their work "Sun & Sea (Marina)," surpassing 89 other national pavilions. This marks the second consecutive year that a performance piece has won the prize, following the German pavilion's win in 2017 for Anne Imhof's "Faust." American artist and filmmaker Arthur Jafa received the Golden Lion for best participant in the Biennale's central exhibition for his film "The White Album," which contrasts manifestations of white supremacy with portraits of white individuals he cares for. Jafa also exhibited a series of large sculptures of truck tires in chains. Catherine Wood, a senior curator specializing in performance at the Tate in London, expressed approval of the winners, stating, "If I could have picked a list, I would've picked the same list." Wood described the Lithuanian pavilion as having a clever way of showcasing people's everyday activities within the context of ecological warnings. She noted the combination of pedestrian movement and a larger story that was both joyful and melancholic. The curator of the pavilion, Lucia Pietroiusti, emphasized the need for museums to think creatively and step outside their usual specializations to explore new possibilities in exhibition formats. Then, when we come across large catastrophic events such as climate change or species extinction, we must seek out additional means of connecting with each other.