The Venice Biennale: A Guide for First-Time Visitors
- 3 hours ago
- 10 min read
1 Apr 2026
The Venice Biennale is frequently described as the “Olympics of the art world.” Yet it may be more precisely understood as an artistic counterpart to the World Expo: a constellation of national pavilions (in addition to the main central exhibition) that, rather than advancing overt nationalism or promotional agendas, engage in more nuanced expressions of cultural positioning. These often unfold through strategies of soft power — whether through gestures of historical reckoning, the revival of overlooked figures, the celebration of contemporary practices or the assertion of influence through transnational representation, as seen in Spain’s presentation of Peruvian artist Sandra Gamarra in 2024.
The prevailing model of the international biennial (or triennial) continues to draw from the inaugural Venice Biennale of 1895 as a foundational point of reference. Its origins can be traced to an 1893 resolution by the Venice City Council to stage an exhibition of contemporary Italian art, with the aim of revitalising the Giardini, then a largely neglected expanse on the eastern edge of the city. A purpose-built exhibition space was constructed, including sections dedicated to invited international artists. Over a defined period, large-scale works were installed and made accessible to the public — an initiative that proved remarkably successful, attracting over 224,000 visitors.
Since that moment, biennials have evolved into some of the most significant and visible platforms for the production, dissemination and critical discourse of contemporary art.
As I have explored in an earlier article, city biennials can act as catalysts for sustainable cultural change. A useful point of departure, however, is to consider why a biennale exists in the first place. Today, its formats vary widely: some remain contained within institutional “white cube” spaces, such as the Whitney Biennial or the São Paulo Biennial; others extend across the urban fabric, as in Berlin Biennale, Sydney Biennale, Liverpool Biennial, or Sharjah Biennial. A smaller number, including Venice and the Gwangju Biennale, incorporate national pavilions, inviting countries to curate exhibitions that reflect their own artistic and cultural narratives.
Despite this continual evolution, the essence of the biennial — broadly understood — remains consistent:
To present a survey of contemporary art – depending on the objectives, theme and curatorial concept, local and/or international artists are selected and commissioned for a biennial, introducing diverse art practices and ideas to the local population
To establish itself as a key reference point in the history of art – by presenting artists relevant to the biennial theme (often highlighting current issues that the world and society face), biennials have become a source for curators, institutions, art historians and collectors looking out for artists that could contribute to the evolution and transformation of art history and artistic practices
Urban renewal and cultural regeneration – through site-specific and large-scale commissions, forgotten or under-utilised public spaces are reinvigorated to house artworks. These often include warehouses, old train stations, schools, parks, purpose-built spaces and white-box art institutions located in isolated areas
Tourism – while majority of biennials aim to engage the local community, the celebration of the cultural life of a city is the crux that attracts both domestic and international visitors, and helps develop the brand of a city or country
Soft power – a platform to present national ideologies to the world, promoting a country’s artistic language and talent; through the “national pavilion” format - developing deeper relationships between countries and cultivating diplomatic relations with new countries through cultural exchange
I have attended the Venice Art Biennale on five occasions—beginning in 2015 and returning for each subsequent art edition, as well as in some alternating years for its architecture counterpart. My first visit was to All the World’s Futures (2015), when I was 21. I later experienced Viva Arte Viva (2017) during a field study with peers from the Sotheby's Institute of Art, followed by May You Live in Interesting Times (2019), The Milk of Dreams (2022), and Foreigners Everywhere (2024). With a longstanding interest in cartography and urban planning, I found myself particularly drawn to the spatial logic of the national pavilions in the Giardini.
Over time, it became clear to me that the Venice Biennale is not a form of passive cultural consumption, but an intellectually demanding experience — one that requires sustained attention and critical engagement.
In retrospect, it was not until The Milk of Dreams (2022) that I began to grasp more fully the conceptual frameworks and subtleties underpinning the Biennale as a whole. Prior to this, my focus had largely rested on the national pavilions themselves, rather than on the curatorial thesis and broader exhibition structure.
In Minor Keys (2026)
Comprising a central exhibition with a theme - In Minor Keys, curated by the late Koyo Kouoh and realised by her team of five (Gabe Beckhurst Feijoo, Marie Hélène Pereira, Rasha Salti, Siddhartha Mitter, Rory Tsapayi), features 111 participants, and will be accompanied by 99 national pavilions, 31 collateral events alongside independent exhibitions throughout Venice.
It is an exhibition permeated with spirit, with a sacredness that puts the person, the human being, back at the heart of things, rediscovering the sense of being in the world by reacquiring a sense of proportion with respect to all earthly elements, and by looking to the sky once more. Koyo Kouoh’s journey is one that reappraises human relationships, starting from people’s own backyards. The little things, which are also great ones. The human dimension, the benchmark of everything, which a part of the world, yet one the most opulent and overdeveloped world – identified in the name ‘West’ – has long since lost sight of, misplaced. Thus, from the powerhouse of Africa, and from one of its leading voices, comes a whisper that leads us back to authenticity, acknowledging that the greatest happiness lies in the use of our own hands – a revelation that brings us back to the Earth, to our bodies and our senses. To a humility towards what is greater than us and what cannot be explained but merely intuited.
In Minor Keys is a metaphor for quiet tones, resilience, joy, and repair amidst global exhaustion and conflict. An invitation to shift from a high-stakes, chaotic pace to a slower tempo, focusing on the signals and "minor keys" of life — such as solace and connection, the theme explores emotional, sensory, and subjective artistic expressions, emphasizing healing, beauty, and the "radicality of joy".
Under Koyo’s curatorial vision, five distinct motifs coalesce to form In Minor Keys:
Shrines: A tribute to lodestar artists Issa Samb (Dakar, 1945–2017) and Beverly Buchanan (USA, 1940–2015), Koyo opens the exhibition with recognising both artists as trailblazers in contributing to the world's understanding of art as generative and evading conventional preservation
Procession. Inspired by carnival choreographies and Afro-Atlantic gatherings, this motif expresses a dynamic spatial language in which joining the crowd, rather than observing, is requisite and implied. Many artistic practices challenge archives and canons, reinterpret established symbols and demystify dominant narratives through transhistorical, speculative or rigorous approaches
Schools. Rooted in their local territories yet transnational, schools are spaces of learning and regeneration founded on encounter, shared knowledge and autonomy from market forces. They reflect a shared ethic and a collaborative practice that intertwines art and social responsibility
Rest. Themes such as the plantation, colonial settlement, environmental disaster and geological memory traverse other works, which confront seismic events and their traces through radical and liberatory methods. This motif reflects on the possibility of stepping back from the encyclopedic impulse to make room for rest, contemplation and deep listening. Multisensory installations encourage rêverie and enchantment, inviting visitors to slow down and allow themselves to be transformed by the experience
Performances. The program of performances centres the body as a site of knowledge and memory, as well as a political vessel for collective resistance and healing
Difference between the Giardini and Arsenale
At the Venice Biennale, a clear spatial and structural distinction emerges between the Giardini and the Arsenale, revealing an embedded hierarchy within its system of national representation. The Giardini, the historic nucleus of the exhibition, houses just 30 permanent national pavilions — largely constructed between 1907 and the early 1960s — over half of which belong to European countries. These purpose-built structures confer both visibility and continuity, with participating nations responsible for their maintenance and long-term presence. By contrast, the majority of participating countries — often numbering between 60 and 90 in recent editions — lack permanent sites and instead present their exhibitions in the Arsenale or in dispersed venues across Venice, including museums, palazzi and deconsecrated churches. These pavilions are inherently temporary, secured through renewed rental agreements for each edition and unfold across a more fragmented urban terrain. While national participation is formally open to any country recognised by the Italian Republic — and, in practice, has also accommodated unrecognised or stateless entities through collateral events — the geography of the Biennale nonetheless shapes the terms of engagement. To move beyond the Giardini and encounter these decentralised presentations requires a deliberate traversal of the city itself, transforming the act of viewing into one of navigation, endurance, and heightened attentiveness.
Fig.1 Annotations:
- Dark blue arrows: Visitor routes to traverse the Giardini upon entry
- Light blue arrow: Route from rest area to the adjacent space across the footbridge
- Red circles (uphill): Global powers of Germany, Great Britain, France, Japan & Russia
- Green circles (main route to the Central Exhibition): Less influential but still significant powers with Spain, Belgium & The Netherlands
- Purple circles: "Old" powers of Austria, Egypt & Greece
- Orange circles (high visibility in a less-significant area): "Newer" powers of USA (early-mid 1900s) & Qatar (early-mid 2000s)
At the founding of the Venice Biennale in 1895, global power was concentrated among a small group of dominant empires — notably Great Britain, France, Germany, the Russian Empire and an increasingly ascendant Japan. These nations commanded significant political influence, expansive colonial networks and substantial financial resources, positioning them to shape international cultural platforms such as the Biennale from its inception. Their early participation — and crucially, their ability to finance and construct permanent pavilions in the Giardini — secured a lasting spatial and symbolic presence that continues to define the exhibition’s structure today.
This concentration of power established an enduring imbalance: over half of the Giardini’s 30 permanent pavilions remain in European hands, reflecting the geopolitical realities of the late 19th and early 20th centuries rather than contemporary global dynamics. The creation of new permanent pavilions has consequently been exceedingly rare, with only a few additions in recent decades, underscoring both the physical limitations of the site and the institutional inertia of this historically embedded system.
Alongside these dominant powers, countries such as Belgium, Spain and the Netherlands occupied more complex positions within the global order. While less influential in high-level diplomacy, they were nonetheless active participants in imperial and economic networks. Belgium wielded disproportionate colonial power through King Leopold II’s control of the Congo Free State; the Netherlands maintained a profitable and extensive presence in the Dutch East Indies (present day Indonesia); and Spain, though in decline, retained remnants of its colonial empire.
Beyond Europe, the United States was rapidly ascending — having recently surpassed Britain as the world’s largest economy — while standing on the threshold of its own expansionist phase at the turn of the century.
Collectively, their roles further illustrate how the early structure of the Biennale — and the distribution of its national pavilions — was shaped by access to wealth, trade and imperial reach, the effects of which remain visible today.
:::
Recommended Itinerary
Duration: Minimum 3 days, ideally at least 6 days
Day 1: Giardini (Main Biennale followed by national pavilions). It is easy to get overwhelmed with pavilions. Always start with the main biennale to get a grasp of the theme.
Day 2: Arsenale (follow the natural route from entry)
Day 3: Revisit the biennale and/or pavilions that you enjoyed or did not get a chance to fully experience (as many contain videos and/or have queues)
Day 4: Prioritise offsite pavilions, rather than independent exhibitions which are often organised and supported by commercial galleries to promote their artists
Day 5 & 6: All other exhibitions around Venice
What To See in the Biennale
Last year, my favourites were the Australian and Great Britain pavilions. For offsite exhibitions, I enjoyed Your Ghosts Are Mine, an exhibition of the film collection by Qatar Museums, as well as Nebula, another exhibition of films organised by Fondazione In Between Art Film. Pavilions I have found to be consistently strong in each Biennale are: Germany, Great Britain, Spain, Australia, Taiwan (offsite) and Hong Kong (offsite).
On my list for 2026:
Pavilions: Qatar (new), India (new return), Uzbekistan
Offsite exhibitions:
The Spirits of Maritime Crossing: 20 artists from Southeast Asia, organised by Bangkok Art Biennale Foundation (Palazzo Rocca Contarini Corfù, Dorsoduro 1057/D) (runs until 2 Aug)
“ _____________” (Gaza - No Words - See the Exhibit), organised by Palestine Museum US (Palazzo Mora, Strada Nova, Cannaregio 3659) (runs until 22 Nov)
CANICULA: Final chapter of the Trilogy of Uncertainties - exploring states of vision as metaphors for the human condition. Organised by Fondazione In Between Art Film (Complesso dell’Ospedaletto, Barbaria delle Tole, 6691) (runs until 22 Nov)
Spiral Economy. Charrière and Canova, organised by the Museo Correr (Museo Correr, Piazza San Marco, 52) (runs until 22 Nov)
When to Go
- Avoid weekends
- Avoid the summer. The best time to visit are the immediate weeks following opening (May) and in the Autumn (Sep - early Nov, before the rainy season)
- Avoid the Italian school holidays
- Check the Biennale and exhibition schedules before planning, as many venues are closed on Mondays
Where to Stay
- If you visit for the sole purpose of the Biennale, stay as close to the two venues as possible
- Venice is pedestrian-only. If not taking a private water taxi, try to stay within a 10-minute walk from the Vaporetto (public water taxi) stations
- Avoid lodging further than the Piazza San Marco, if possible (San Marco is about 25min walk from the Giardini)
Practical Tips
- Wear comfortable, sensible shoes: This is not the time to be fancy. There will be many steps and dark spaces
- Buy your ticket online in advance (3-day pass). It is not necessary to attend during the opening week as it is crowded and mainly for networking
- Understand the theme of the main Biennale to grasp what the curator is trying to convey and how the inclusion of each artist fits into the overarching theme
- Read the text and engage with mediators. Ask questions. Read the material provided at each pavilion for a more thorough understanding of each presentation
- Visit with an open-mind. Over the years, many pavilions I didn't expect to like (due to unconscious bias) turned out to be eye-opening
- Prioritise presentations organised by reputable nonprofit organisations from regions that you are not often exposed to. It is easy to gravitate towards artists that you are familiar with. As an example, Latin America, Central Asia and indigenous artists are presentations that I don't often encounter in my course of travel
Venice during the Biennale period is the best time to discover the world.
What's in my Bag
- Carry as light a bag as possible. Small tote bags are functional, artsy and perfect for keeping pamphlets from different venues - this is great take home information for in-depth explanation
- Phone & portable charger: I mainly take pictures of exhibition labels and artworks
- Sunglasses
- Hat (optional)
- Wallet: Bank cards, cash and name cards (always handy as you meet many people)
- Coco water / Electrolyte salts. There are illy cafes dotted around but you won't probably won't have much time to sit down
- Snacks: Have a large breakfast before your day trek. There isn't much to eat inside the two venues and little space to sit
- Notes app: Research pavilions and artists in advance; make a note of those that interest you to prevent missing them
- Map of Biennale & pen: You will get confused especially in the Giardini and central exhibition. Don't count on having a set route as more popular pavilions will have queues
:::
The 61st Venice Biennale – In Minor Keys – runs from 9 May to 22 November 2026.
Comments