In Minor Keys: la Biennale Arte 2026 sarà un cammino tra poesia, suono e performance

Manca poco alla 61ma Esposizione Internazionale d’Arte La Biennale di Venezia, che si svolgerà da sabato 9 maggio a domenica 22 novembre 2026 e avrà come titolo In Minor Keys, un concetto che si lega alla nostalgia della musica jazz ma anche a un desiderio di non sovrastare le voci degli artisti con eccessivi dispositivi curatoriali. Il progetto è completamente definito nelle scelte artistiche e teoriche da Koyo Kouoh, prematuramente scomparsa lo scorso maggio. Al centro dell’esposizione non vi è quindi la ricerca di coesione tra pratiche diverse ma un desiderio di presentare esperienze che coinvolgano tutti i sensi, con un’attenzione per le “frequenze più basse”, un riconnettersi, insomma, con quella che per Kouoh è la vera funzione dell’arte, specialmente nei periodi di crisi.

Ora, a poco più di due mesi dalla data di apertura della manifestazione d’arte contemporanea più famosa del mondo, tutte le carte vengono svelate ed è proprio il team di Kouoh a raccontarcele: durante la conferenza stampa di presentazione svoltasi oggi, 25 febbraio, a Ca’ Giustinian, sono intervenuti Gabe Beckhurst Feijoo, Marie Helene Pereira e Rasha Salti, Siddhartha Mitter in qualità di editor-in-chief e l’assistente alla ricerca Rory Tsapayi, oltre al presidente della Biennale, Pietrangelo Buttafuoco.

Gli artisti selezionati per quest’edizione sono 105, a cui si aggiungono 6 organizzazioni artistiche e sono moltissime le geografie e le generazioni rappresentate. Tra questi: Kader Attia, Alfredo Jaar, Carsten Höller, Annalee David, Walid Raad, Otobong Nkanga, Tabita Rezaire. Anche i media utilizzati saranno molteplici, e spazieranno dalle tecniche tradizionali a pratiche collettive. Tra questi, un ruolo centrale è affidato alla performance, con un programma articolato che si svilupperà per tutta la settimana di apertura della Biennale. Tra questi vi è anche un caravan della poesia: nei Giardini della Biennale, si raduneranno numerosi poeti per formare un coro dal sapore spirituale.

Uno dei temi in cui il titolo si declina è poi quello della soglia, The Threshold, che infonderà l’intero apparato allestitivo, sviluppato dallo studio Wolff Architects, di base a Cape Town. Partendo da questo approccio, la tematica dei Shrines —che include lavori di Big Chief Demond Melancon, Nick Cave, Ebony G. Patterson— si svilupperà come un assemblage privo di muro, in cui ogni opera si regge interamente sulla propria presenza fisica e invita lo spettatore ad entrare in rapporto diretto con il lavoro dell’artista.

Vi è poi, nell’articolazione tematica dell’esposizione, un importante focus sulle Scuole, intese come spazio in cui le future generazioni vengono formate. Qui, saranno presentate le pratiche di sei istituzioni che si basano su una trasmissione creativa e orizzontale del sapere, basata su intuizione e pratiche collettive.

Uno spazio importante viene poi occupato dal creo-garden, che trova una sua ideale continuazione nel lavoro di Linda Goode Bryant nei Giardini. L’Arsenale prevede poi un Padiglione delle Arti Applicate, sviluppato in collaborazione con il Victoria and Albert Museum e che presenterà la produzione di Gala Porras-Kim. Ma la Biennale di estenderà anche al di fuori dell’isola di Venezia, raggiungendo, per la prima volta nella sua storia,  Forte Marghera, dove verranno presentati lavori, tra gli altri, di Fabrice Aragno.

Tra le altre importanti novità della Biennale d’Arte 2026, vi è poi la decisione di non assegnare i Leoni d’oro alla Carriera, in quanto non definiti da Koyo Kouoh, e la partnership esclusiva con Fondazione Bulgari per le prossime tre edizioni, con la maison che presenterà un suo padiglione nello spazio dei Giardini.

La lista completa degli artisti della 61ma Esposizione Internazionale d’Arte della Biennale di Venezia 2026

Pio Abad (Born 1983, Manila, Philippines. Lives in London, UK)
Philip Aguirre y Otegui (Born 1961, Schoten, Belgium. Lives in Antwerp, Belgium)
Akinbode Akinbiyi (Born 1946, Oxford, UK. Lives in Berlin, Germany)
Laurie Anderson (Born 1947, Chicago, IL, USA. Lives in New York City, NY, USA)
Fabrice Aragno (Born 1970, Neuchâtel, Switzerland. Lives in Lausanne, Switzerland)
arms ache avid aeon: Nancy Brooks Brody (Born 1962, New York City, NY, USA, D. 2023); Joy Episalla (Born 1957, Bronxville, NY, USA. Lives in New York City, NY, USA); Zoe Leonard (Born 1961 Liberty, NY, USA. Lives in New York City, NY, USA); Carrie Yamaoka (Born 1957, Glen Cove, NY, USA. Lives in New York City, NY, USA); fierce pussy (Founded 1991, New York City, NY, USA); Jo-ey Tang (Born 1978, Hong Kong, China. Lives in New York City, NY, USA)
Kader Attia (Born, 1970, Dugny, France. Lives in Berlin, Germany and Paris, France)
Sammy Baloji (Born 1978, Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Lives in Brussels, Belgium and Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of the Congo)
Ranti Bam (Born 1985, Lagos, Nigeria. Lives in Paris, France and Lagos, Nigeria)
Alvaro Barrington (Born 1983, Caracas, Venezuela. Lives in London, UK)
Éric Baudelaire (Born 1973, Salt Lake City, UT, USA. Lives in Paris, France)
Sabian Baumann (Born 1962, Zug, Switzerland. Lives in Zurich, Switzerland)
blaxTARLINES KUMASI (Founded 2015, Kumasi, Ghana)
Beverly Buchanan (Born 1940, Fuquay, NC, USA. D. 2015)
Seyni Awa Camara (Born 1945, Oussouy, Senegal. D. 2026)
Nick Cave (Born 1959, Chicago, IL, USA. Lives in Chicago, IL, USA)
Carolina Caycedo (Colombian, born 1978, London, UK. Lives in Los Angeles, CA, USA and Caguas, Puerto Rico)
Annalee Davis (Born 1963, St. Michael, Barbados. Lives in St. George, Barbados)
BuBu de la Madeleine (Born 1961, Osaka, Japan. Lives in Nara, Japan)
Dawn DeDeaux (Born 1952, New Orleans, LA, USA. Lives in New Orleans, LA, USA)
Nolan Oswald Dennis (Born 1988, Lusaka, Zambia. Lives in Johannesburg, South Africa)
Denniston Hill (Founded 2008, Glen Wild, NY, USA)
Bonnie Devine (Born 1952, Toronto, Canada. Lives in Toronto, Canada)
Godfried Donkor (Born 1964, Accra, Ghana. Lives in London, UK and Accra, Ghana)
Marcel Duchamp (Born 1887, Blainville-Crevon, France. D. 1968)
Edouard Duval-Carrié (Born 1954, Port-au-Prince, Haïtï. Lives in Miami, FL, USA)
Torkwase Dyson (Born 1973, Chicago, IL, USA. Lives in Beacon, NY, USA)
rana elnemr (Born 1974, Hannover, Germany. Lives in Cairo, Egypt)
Theo Eshetu (Born 1958, London, UK. Lives in Berlin, Germany and Rome, Italy)
Rachel Fallon (with Alice Maher) (Born 1971, Dublin, Ireland. Lives in Dublin, Ireland)
G.A.S. Foundation (Founded 2023, Lagos and Ijebu Ode, Nigeria)
Sofía Gallisá Muriente (Born 1986, San Juan, Puerto Rico. Lives in Puerto Rico)
Adebunmi Gbadebo (Born 1992, Livingston, NJ, USA. Lives in Philadelphia, PA and Newark, NJ, USA)
Leonilda González (Born 1923, Minuano, Uruguay. D. 2017)
Linda Goode Bryant (Born 1949, Columbus, OH, USA. Lives in New York City, NY, USA)
Joana Hadjithomas & Khalil Joreige (Born 1969, Beirut, Lebanon. Lives in Beirut, Lebanon and Paris, France; Born 1969, Moussaitbeh, Lebanon. Lives in Beirut, Lebanon and Paris, France)
Alexa Kumiko Hatanaka (Born 1988, Toronto, Canada. Lives in Toronto, Canada; New York City, NY, USA; and Japan)
Ayrson Heráclito (Born 1968, Macaúbas, Bahia, Brazil. Lives in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil)
Clarissa Herbst & Dominique Rust (Born 1959, Crailsheim, Germany. Lives in Zurich, Switzerland; Born 1960, Basel, Switzerland. Lives in Zurich, Switzerland)
Nicholas Hlobo (Born 1975, Cape Town, South Africa. Lives in Johannesburg, South Africa)
Carsten Höller (Born 1961, Brussels, Belgium. Lives in Stockholm, Sweden; Biriwa, Ghana; and Tuscany, Italy)
Sohrab Hura (Born 1981, Chinsurah, India. Lives in New Delhi, India)
Alfredo Jaar (Born 1965, Santiago, Chile. Lives in Lisbon, Portugal)
Mohammed Joha (Born 1978, Gaza, Palestine. Lives in Marseille, France)
Michael Joo (Born 1966, Ithaca, NY, USA. Lives in New York City, NY, USA)
Nina Katchadourian (Born 1968, Stanford, CA, USA. Lives in New York City, NY, USA and Berlin, Germany)
Bodys Isek Kingelez (Born 1948, Kimbembele Ihunga, former Belgian Congo, now Democratic Republic of the Congo. D. 2015)
Sandra Knecht (Born 1968, Buus, Switzerland. Lives in Buus, Switzerland)
Marcia Kur (Born 1970, Kano State, Nigeria. Lives in Princeton, NJ, USA; Abuja, and Kaduna, Nigeria)
Natalia Lassalle-Morillo (in collaboration with Gloria Morillo) (Born 1991, San Juan, Puerto Rico. Lives in San Juan, Puerto Rico)
Florence Lazar (Born 1966, Paris, France. Lives in Paris, France)
Dan Lie (Born 1988. Lives in Berlin, Germany)
Werewere Liking (Born 1950, Mgombas, Cameroon. Lives in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire)
lugar a dudas (Founded 2004, Cali, Colombia)
Daniel Lind-Ramos (Born 1953, Loiza, Puerto Rico. Lives in Loiza, Puerto Rico)
Alice Maher (Born 1956, Tipperary, Ireland. Lives in County Mayo, Ireland)
Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons & Kamaal Malak (Born 1959, Matanzas, Cuba Lives in Nashville, TN, USA; Born 1962, Philadelphia, PA, USA. Lives in Nashville, TN, USA)
Senzeni Marasela (Born 1977, Thokoza, South Africa. Lives in Johannesburg, South Africa)
Guadalupe Maravilla (Born 1976, San Salvador, El Salvador. Lives in New York City, NY, USA)
Manuel Mathieu (Born 1986, Port-au-Prince, Haïtï. Lives in Montreal, Canada and Paris, France)
Georgina Maxim (Born 1980, Harare, Zimbabwe. Lives in Harare and Mutare, Zimbabwe)
Tiona Nekkia McClodden (Born 1981, Blytheville, AR, USA. Lives in Philadelphia, PA, USA)
Big Chief Demond Melancon (Born 1978, New Orleans, LA, USA. Lives in New Orleans, LA, USA)
Avi Mograbi (Born 1956, Tel Aviv. Lives in Lisbon, Portugal)
Wangechi Mutu (Born 1972, Nairobi, Kenya. Lives in New York City, NY, USA and Nairobi, Kenya)
Nairobi Contemporary Art Institute (NCAI) (Founded 2020, Nairobi, Kenya)
Eustaquio Neves (Born 1955, Juatuba, Brazil. Lives in Diamantina, Brazil)
Tuấn Andrew Nguyễn (Born 1976, Sài Gòn, Việt Nam. Lives in Hội An, works in Hồ Chí Minh City, Việt Nam)
Tammy Nguyen (Born 1984, San Francisco, CA, USA. Lives in Easton, CT, USA)
Otobong Nkanga (Born 1974, Kano, Nigeria. Lives in Antwerp, Belgium, and Uyo, Nigeria)
Kaloki Nyamai (Born 1985, Nairobi, Kenya. Lives in Nairobi, Kenya)
Temitayo Ogunbiyi (Born 1984, Rochester, NY, USA. Lives in Lagos, Nigeria)
Pauline Oliveros (Born 1932, Houston, TX, USA. D. 2016)
Kambui Olujimi (Born 1976, Brooklyn, New York City, NY, USA. Lives in New York City, NY, USA)
Hagar Ophir (Born 1983, Jerusalem. Lives in Berlin, Germany)
Uriel Orlow (Born 1973, Zurich, Switzerland. Lives in Lisbon, Portugal; London, UK; and Basel, Switzerland)
Ebony G. Patterson (Born 1981, Kingston, Jamaica. Lives in Kingston, Jamaica and Chicago, IL, USA)
Rajni Perera & Marigold Santos (Born 1985, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Lives in Toronto, Canada; Born 1981, Manila, Phillipines. Lives in Calgary, Canada)
Thania Petersen (Born 1980, Cape Town, South Africa. Lives in Cape Town, South Africa)
Alan Phelan (Born 1968, Dublin, Ireland. Lives in Dublin, Ireland)
Johannes Phokela (Born 1966, Johannesburg, South Africa. Lives in Johannesburg, South Africa)
Léonard Pongo (Born 1988, Liège, Belgium. Lives in Brussels, Belgium and Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo)
Walid Raad (Born 1967, Chbanieh, Lebanon. Lives in Medusa, NY, USA)
Mohammed Z. Rahman (Born 1997, London, UK. Lives in London, UK)
RAW Material Company (Founded 2008, Dakar, Senegal)
Tabita Rezaire (Born 1989, Paris, France, 1989. Lives in Cayenne, French Guiana)
Guadalupe Rosales (Born 1980, Redwood City, CA, USA. Lives in Los Angeles, CA, USA)
Yo-E Ryou (Born 1987, Seoul, South Korea. Lives in Seoul and Jeju Island, South Korea)
Khaled Sabsabi (Born 1965, Tripoli, Lebanon. Lives in Sydney, Australia)
Rose Salane (Born 1992, New York City, NY, USA.  Lives in New York City, NY, USA)
Issa Samb (Born 1945, Dakar, Senegal. D. 2017)
Amina Saoudi Aït Khay (Born 1955, Casablanca, Morocco. Lives in Sousse, Tunisia)
Carrie Schneider (Born 1979, Chicago, IL USA. Lives in New York City, NY, USA)
Hala Schoukair (Born 1957, Beirut, Lebanon. Lives in Beirut, Lebanon)
Berni Searle (Born 1964, Cape Town, South Africa. Lives in Cape Town, South Africa)
Mmakgabo Mmapula Helen Sebidi (Born 1943, Marapyane, South Africa. Lives in Johannesburg, South Africa)
Wardha Shabbir (Born 1987, Lahore, Pakistan. Lives in Lahore, Pakistan)
Yoshiko Shimada (Born 1959, Tokyo, Japan. Lives in Chiba, Japan)
Himali Singh Soin & David Soin Tappeser (Born 1987, New Delhi, India. Lives in London, UK and New Delhi, India; Born 1985, Bonn, Germany. Lives in London, UK and New Delhi, India)
Buhlebezwe Siwani (Born 1987, Johannesburg, South Africa. Lives in Amsterdam, Netherlands and Cape Town, South Africa)
Cauleen Smith (Born 1967, Riverside, CA, USA. Lives in Los Angeles, CA, USA)
Vera Tamari (Born 1944, Jerusalem, Palestine.  1944. Lives in Ramallah, Palestine)
Tsai Ming-liang (Born 1957, Kuching, Malaysia. Lives in New Taipei City and Taipei, Taiwan)
Victoria-Idongesit Udondian (Born 1982, Uyo, Nigeria. Lives in Lagos, Nigeria and New York City, NY, USA)
Celia Vásquez Yui (Born 1960, Pucallpa, Peru. Lives in the Peruvian Amazon, Pucallpa, Peru)
Kemang Wa Lehulere (Born 1984, Cape Town, South Africa. Lives in Cape Town, South Africa)
Kennedy Yanko (Born 1988, St. Louis, MO, USA. Lives in Miami, FL, USA)
Raed Yassin (Born 1979, Beirut, Lebanon. Lives in Beirut, Lebanon and Berlin, Germany)
Sawangwongse Yawnghwe (Born 1971, Shan State Burma. Lives in Zutphen, Netherlands and Chiang Mai, Thailand)
Billie Zangewa (Born 1973, Blantyre, Malawi. Lives in Johannesburg, South Africa)

APPLIED ARTS PAVILION
Un progetto speciale della Biennale di Venezia e del Victoria and Albert Museum di Londra
Gala Porras-Kim* (Born 1984, Bogotá, Colombia. Lives in Los Angeles, CA, USA and London, UK)
* Fuori dalla competizione