Venice Biennale 2026
Breaking news, analysis, interviews and more from the world-famous exhibition, including The Art Newspaper’s on-the-ground coverage
Latest
Banksy’s Venice mural has been restored and will now tour city
The work known as ‘Migrant Child’ was extensively conserved in a project funded by the banking group Banca Ifis
‘Exclusion can only satisfy the ego’: Venice Biennale president hits out at critics amid Russia and Israel controversy
At a conference on 6 May, Pietrangelo Buttafuoco said that calls to ban countries from the Biennale would go against its mission to be ‘the place where the world comes together’
Major protests take place at Venice Biennale previews
More than 200 people attended a protest outside the Israeli pavilion, while the activists groups Pussy Riot and FEMEN led a demonstration at Russia’s
S&M-inspired Greek Pavilion in Venice confronts its fascist chains
Andreas Angelidakis's Biennale exhibition honours the murdered drag artist Zak Kostopoulos, while confronting the pavilion's fraught history
Thinking small and dreaming big in Isabel Nolan’s imaginary world
For Ireland’s pavilion, Isabel Nolan has created an imaginary world inspired by the Renaissance humanist Aldo Manuzio, whose ambition was to democratise reading
Diary
How sweet it is: chocolate Russell Crowe at the Malta Pavilion
A chocolate gladiator features in Valletta-based artist Charlie Cauchi's film and accompanying installation in the Arsenale
Nature is healing? Seagull lays eggs in the Giardini during Venice Biennale preview
The new mother may have upstaged some of the artwork on show
Alvaro Barrington takes a road trip to the Venice Biennale
The artist's contribution to In Minor Keys includes a decked out truck driven from London to Venice
‘She had a fresh, informed eye’: mural depicting late Venice Biennale curator Koyo Kouoh displayed in lagoon city
Derrick Adams’ piece features “beams of gold signifying the brilliance and reach” of the curator’s influence
Guides
Our pick of the best pavilions at the 61st Venice Biennale
From splashing sewage to moments of zen, here is our selection of top national presentations in the Giardini, Arsenale and across town
Venice Biennale 2026: all the national pavilions, artists and curators
The key players representing their countries at the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia
Venice Biennale curatorial team reveal how they are bringing the late Koyo Kouoh's vision to life
The team announced the 111 artists and artist collectives—many of whom come from the Global South—that will be included in the exhibition "In Minor Keys"
Luca De Michelis, chief executive of Marsilio Arte, on his favourite spots in Venice beyond the Biennale
The head of the Venice-based publisher and exhibition organising company shares his suggestions for places to eat, shop and explore
Features
In Minor Keys: how Venice's international exhibition was brought to life after the death of artistic director Koyo Kouoh
Our guide to the themes and strands of this year's international exhibition, and some of the key artists on display
The Venice Biennale has long been a sales platform—now no one is pretending otherwise
From a Christie's exhibition to a posthumous display of Mel Ramos, this year numerous explicitly commercial shows signal a shift in attitude
The art of politics: how global conflicts are playing out in this year's Venice Biennale
Israel and Russia's return to the Biennale has sparked threats of disruption
Exhibitions
Polish pavilion at Venice Biennale explores fluidity of language with film recorded underwater
Deaf and hearing performers worked on the project, filmed in a Warsaw swimming pool
Shirin Neshat's Venice exhibition explores identity, exile and a social media tragedy
For her show at the Palazzo Marin, the artist found inspiration in the story of fellow Iranian Nasim Aghdam, whose dispute with YouTube escalated into violence
The US pavilion's curator on the controversial choice of Alma Allen for the Venice Biennale
The artist’s geologically based works are the ideal choice as the US celebrates 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence, says Jeffrey Uslip
The Bahamas returns to the Venice Biennale with a joy-filled posthumous collaboration
Lavar Munroe is showing work alongside that of his mentor, the late John Beadle, celebrating the islands' community and carnival traditions
Muscle memory: Natasha Tontey’s wild Venice installation explodes perceptions of Indonesian history
The artist’s B-movie inspired project at Ateneo Veneto reimagines the story of Len Karamoy, an overlooked member of the resistance movement Permesta
Artist interviews
'I wanted to catch the desperation': Dries Verhoeven on turning the Dutch pavilion into a bunker for the Venice Biennale
The open, light-filled Dutch pavilion has been turned into a dark bunker-like space, where visitors will experience a raw vocal performance
Lee Ufan: ‘I try to bring together those things which are made and unmade’
The South Korean artist, whose work is on show in Venice's Piazza San Marco during the Biennale, describes how his work combines the natural and industrial, and why he taught himself to draw breath—literally
Lubaina Himid on capturing the 'uneasiness' of Britain for her Venice Biennale pavilion
The artist, who was born in Zanzibar, describes Britain as having "all the hallmarks of safety and calm, but has an underlying loathing of the Other"
Venice show brings together two leading figures from the Polish avant-garde
The the 20th-century artists Tadeusz Kantor and Maria Jarema feature in a collateral exhibition at the 61st Biennale
Boats and trains, not planes: reflections on a greener—but sometimes greenwashed—Venice Biennale
From curator Koyo Kouoh’s foregrounding of “all earthly elements” to Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo's new sustainable art island, references to the environment can be found throughout the Italian city
Iran has not withdrawn from 2026 Venice Biennale, pavilion commissioner says
Mahdizadeh Tehrani, from Iran’s ministry of culture and Islamic guidance (MCIG), has said that the country is still negotiating to show at the event despite Biennale organisers announcing it would not participate
‘This is the place of dreams’: Patrizia Sandretto Re Rebaudengo’s Venetian island venue opens to public
San Giacomo launched with two temporary exhibitions and a series of site-specific works, including a leaning church
Su Xiaobai's Venice exhibition melds Chinese lacquer with European abstraction
Lacquer paintings by the Chinese-German artist, whose foundation launches a curatorial residency in Shanghai this year, go on display at a collateral biennale event in a 15th century palazzo
More than 70 Venice Biennale artists withdraw from awards
Walid Raad, Alice Maher and Alfredo Jaar are among those who have signed a protest statement in solidarity with the resignation of the exhibition's jury
Fashion figure Jordan Roth wows in collage at the Venice Biennale
Having just taken on the Met Gala as a "living sculpture", the multi-disciplinary artist came to Venice later in the week for a compelling performance
The Big Review | Venice Biennale 2026: In Minor Keys ★★★½
Staged a year after the death of its curator, Koyo Kouoh, the Venice Biennale’s main exhibition unfolds as a sometimes-cacophonous procession guided by sentinels and hybrid beings in a rich but uneven show
Venice Biennale Special 2026—podcast
In this week's special Venice Biennale episode, Ben Luke reviews In Minor Keys along with Louisa Buck and Jane Morris, interviews artists Gabrielle Goliath and Lubaina Himid and meets writer Saidiya Hartman. Digital editor Alexander Morrison hears about a collateral event by Belarus Free Theatre, and Ben Luke learns about the restoration of two paintings by Tintoretto.
At the Venice Biennale, Ukraine’s Pinchuk Art Centre finds fragile moments of joy amid loss
Once known for its celebrity-filled opening parties, the Kyiv institution now foregrounds stories of survival and resilience in wartime Ukraine
Venice Biennale strike sees more than 15 pavilions temporarily or partially close
The action, organised by the campaign group Art Not Genocide Alliance, will culminate in a rally in the city
‘This is an opportunity that will never happen again’: Syrian artist Sara Shamma on rebuilding her country
The Syrian pavilion brings back to life an ancient funerary tower, in tribute to the culture destroyed during the Syrian war
Sound-based Holy See pavilion opens at Venice Biennale as Vatican’s contemporary art ambitions grow
The Vatican meanwhile recently opened a contemporary art space, which next year will feature work by artists including Yan Pei-Ming
Parasol Unit returns with a showcase of women from Central Asia and beyond
The non-profit London space, which closed in 2020, enters a new era at the Venice Biennale with an exhibition of 11 female artists
Lotus Kang channels desire into Bvlgari's Venice Biennale pavilion
The Canada-born, New York-based artist creates works informed by everything from industrial rubber to rat pups
New Zealand's Venice Biennale pavilion explores the secret life of birds
Fiona Pardington is showing her towering portraits of the country's endangered and extinct bird life
Cultural workers at Venice Biennale to strike over Israel’s participation
A rally is also planned to take place in the city on the same day, 8 May
Arthur Jafa: ‘America has always been a demonic state. And we love it’
Jafa and Richard Prince come together for the first time in an explosive new exhibition which shows their shared interest in appropriation and the real America
Mind the baby! Visitors to the Japanese Venice Biennale pavilion will be asked to look after dolls
Ei Arakawa-Nash's exhibition explores the nature of caregiving, inspired by becoming a parent to twins
Venice exhibition of site-specific films aims to capture the hyper stimulating times we are living in
The show "Canicula" is the third in a series presented by Fondazione In Between Art Film
‘We are complicit’: Austrian artist Florentina Holzinger’s immersive Venice Biennale pavilion brings apocalypse to the city
This year’s Austrian pavilion echoes the science-fiction film “Waterworld”, with a side order of body horror
‘It’s really important that the public is not just a silent witness’: Marina Abramović on her Venice Biennale exhibition
The self-styled “grandmother of performance art” is the first female living artist to exhibit at the Gallerie dell’Accademia—and she wants everyone to join in
Iran will not participate at the 2026 Venice Biennale
Iran appears to have withdrawn from the 61st edition of the event, amid rising tensions and fears of renewed conflict in the Middle East
Morocco debuts at the Biennale with an exploration of its age-old craft traditions
Artist Amina Agueznay has created a 300 sq m site-specific installation in the Arsenale
Venice Biennale’s jury resigns
The five-person jury resigned amid an escalating dispute over the participation of Israel and Russia at this year’s Biennale
Georg Baselitz, German artist who turned figurative painting on its head, has died, aged 88
Baselitz’s death comes on the eve of a major exhibition of his latest paintings at the Fondazione Giorgio Cini concurrent with the Venice Biennale
East Africa meets Western Europe as Michael Armitage takes on Venice's Palazzo Grassi
The sweeping exhibition "The Promise of Change" demonstrates the painter’s fascination with art history and mythology, and his movement between dreams and documentary
Israel’s foreign ministry accuses Venice Biennale's jury of ‘politicising’ exhibition
The Biennale's five-member international jury announced on Thursday that it would not award prizes to countries “whose leaders are currently charged with crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court”
From monumental glass sculptures to a lagoon in the sky: what to see beyond the Venice Biennale pavilions
Ambitious art projects abound across the streets—and islands—of Venice
FKA Twigs and Brian Eno among artists included in the Vatican's sound-based 2026 Venice Biennale pavilion
The Holy See pavilion will honour the the life and legacy of the Benedictine nun, Saint Hildegard of Bingen