Guide: Venice Biennale 2026

Curator and artist Jacquill G. Basdew shares his five tips for the 2026 Venice Biennale.

Guide

June 2026

‘What stayed with me throughout this Biennale was the question of what artists are trying to make visible today, in a time of immense global unrest, constant digital connectedness, and shifting power structures. Which voices are being given space, which perspectives continue to be marginalised, and which countries are truly willing to give artists the freedom to tell an honest and complex story?’

Fig 1. Exterior view of the Central Pavilion at the Giardini during the 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, "In Minor Keys." Ph. Andrea Avezzù. Courtesy La Biennale di Venezia.

Kaloki Nyamai

Central Pavilion / Arsenale

Fig 2. Kaloki Nyamai, Nenda ulika kewone, 2023, Galerie Barbara Thumm

Central Pavilion / Arsenale

Earlier this year, I had already spoken about Kaloki Nyamai’s work and his participation in the Venice Biennale, but seeing it there still completely blew me away. His monumental textile works bring together memory, ancestral knowledge and collective identity in a visual language that feels both personal and political. It is also striking how strongly the Kenyan presence can be felt throughout this year’s Biennale – and above all, how compelling the work itself is.

Kaloki Nyamai, Nenda ulika kewone, 2023, mixed media, acrylic, collage stitching on canvas, 200 x 205 cm | Galerie Barbara Thumm

Wangechi Mutu

Fig 3. Wangechi Mutu, Yo Mama, 2003 | geschenk van The Judith Rothschild Foundation Contemporary Drawings Collection

Wangechi Mutu

Central Pavilion / Arsenale

Wangechi Mutu once again shows how powerful that Kenyan presence is within this Biennale. Her work moves between mythology, ecology, spirituality and diaspora, and does so with a rare sense of ease. The new sculptural installations feel almost timeless, as if they emerged from both a distant past and a future still waiting to take shape. At the Biennale, she presents In The End, Where All began, EdEN.

Wangechi Mutu, Yo Mama, 2003, ink, mica flakes, acrylic, pressure-sensitive film, cut-and-pasted printed paper and painted paper on paper, 150.2 x 215.9 cm | The Judith Rothschild Foundation Contemporary Drawings Collection Gift

Lorna Simpson | Third Person

Punta della Dogana

Fig 4. Lorna Simpson, Tried by Fire, 2017 | © Palazzo Grassi, Pinault Collection, foto: James Wang

Punta della Dogana

Lorna Simpson comes fully into her own at Punta della Dogana. Third Person, on view at this Venetian venue of the Pinault Collection, is for me one of the strongest presentations outside the Giardini and the Arsenale. Simpson moves convincingly between photography, painting, collage, sculpture and film, while themes of memory, race, the archive and disappearance continually fold into one another.

Lorna Simpson, Tried by Fire, 2017, courtesy of the artist and Hauser & Wirth, from: Lorna Simpson, Third Person, 2026, installation Punta della Dogana, Venezia | © Palazzo Grassi, Pinault Collection, photo: James Wang

The Only True Protest Is Beauty

The Only True Protest Is Beauty

Palazzo Pisani Moretta

A sharp and intentionally curated presentation within the new Fondazione Dries Van Noten, on view at Palazzo Pisani Moretta. The Only True Protest Is Beauty approaches beauty not as escapism, but as a charged force capable of unsettling the familiar and making space for the unexpected. The dialogue between art, craftsmanship and the richly historical Venetian palazzo makes the presentation all the more compelling.

An installation view of Fondazione Dries Van Noten’s first exhibition, The Only True Protest is Beauty. From left, Comme des Garçons Collection S/S 2025, headpiece by Julien d’Ys, courtesy of Comme des Garçons. Christian Lacroix Haute Couture A/W 2004, wig by Fabio Petri, courtesy of Christian Lacroix, STL group. Kate MccGwire, {{Stifle}}, 2008, mixed media, private collection. Ph. Matteo de Mayda

Ruin

German Pavilion

German Pavilion

One of the most urgent contributions to this Biennale. At the German Pavilion, Ruin brings together Sung Tieu and Henrike Naumann in a layered reflection on architecture, migration, exclusion and memory. In Tieu’s work especially, the tension between personal history and larger structures of power becomes palpable – as does the question of who is allowed visibility within national and institutional narratives, and who is not.

Henrike Naumann, The Home Front, 2026 | photo: Jens Ziehe

The Venice Biennale takes place until 22 November 2026, labiennale.org.