Venice Art Biennale 2026: 4 pavilions you shouldn’t miss

Venice Art Biennale 2026: 4 pavilions you shouldn’t miss

The 61st International Art Exhibition runs from 9 May to 22 November 2026. If your time is limited, these four pavilions capture key themes of this year’s program through immersive works and powerful narratives.

• Belgium Pavilion (Giardini): a participatory installation by Miet Warlop titled IT NEVER SSST. The work blends stage-like scenography and live performers, inviting visitors into a collective dance and shared emotional experience.
• Lebanon Pavilion (Arsenale): Don’t Get Me Wrong by Nabil Nahas, curated by Nada Ghandour. A 45-meter frieze made of 26 panels inspired by Persian miniatures, it creates an immersive route that reflects on nature, cosmos and geometric abstraction.
• Sierra Leone Pavilion: participating at the Biennale for the first time with Mondi Presenti, a polyphonic exhibition featuring artists from Sierra Leone and other African countries. The show investigates identity through encounter and plurality. Curators: Sandro Orlandi Stagl and Willy Montini.
• Italy Pavilion: Con te con tutto by Chiara Camoni, curated by Cecilia Canziani. The pavilion is transformed into a «forest» of 24 terracotta and ceramic figures, staged in dim light to evoke wonder and a slower pace of attention.

Practical tips:

• The exhibition runs from 2026-05-09 to 2026-11-22: check opening hours and scheduled performances before visiting.
• Allow time for both Giardini and Arsenale—plan at least half a day to move between key pavilions comfortably.
• Some works include live participation or timed performances—consult the program to catch them live.
• Note the artists’ and curators’ names mentioned here to follow recurring themes across the Biennale.

These four pavilions offer diverse approaches—collective performance, cosmological imagery, plural voices from Africa and sculptural landscapes—that help define the tone of the Venice Biennale 2026.