site.bta99 National Participations Announced for 2026 Venice Biennale Art Exhibition

A total of 99 national participations and 31 collateral events will be presented during the 61st International Art Exhibition of the Venice Biennale (Biennale Arte) in Venice. The 2026 forum In Minor Keys curated by Koyo Kouoh will be held from May 9 to November 22, 2026, the Biennale team said.

Debutants

Seven countries will take part in the art biennale for the first time: the Republic of Guinea, the Republic of Equatorial Guinea, the Republic of Nauru, Qatar, the Republic of Sierra Leone, the Federal Republic of Somalia and the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam. El Salvador will participate for the first time with its own national pavilion, the organizers said.

They noted that the institution is open to participation by countries, with national presentations initiated by the respective states themselves. Any country recognized by Italy may independently apply for participation, through notification if it has its own pavilion in the Giardini della Biennale park complex, or through an official letter from a competent state authority if it does not have a permanent pavilion.

The organizers also noted that over the years countries not officially recognized by Italy have found ways to take part through collateral events.

In a statement, the organizers emphasized that the Biennale rejects any forms of exclusion or censorship in relation to culture and art.

“La Biennale, like the city of Venice, continues to be a place of dialogue, openness, and artistic freedom, encouraging connections between peoples and cultures, with enduring hope for the cessation of conflicts and suffering,” the Biennale team added.

Bulgaria and the Balkans

Bulgaria will participate with the project The Federation of Minor Practices, curated by Martina Yordanova and created by Veneta Androva, Gery Georgieva, Maria Nalbantova and Rayna Teneva. This year the Bulgarian pavilion is conceived as the headquarters of a fictional research laboratory structured within a time frame consisting of past, present and future.

The Bulgarian pavilion will be located in the Tiziano Hall, where Bulgarian projects were shown during the 18th and 19th editions of the Architecture Biennale (2023 and 2025), as well as during the 60th edition of the Venice Biennale Art Exhibition in 2024.

Albania will present the project A Place in the Sun. The pavilion commissioner is the country’s Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sports. The project is curated by Malgorzata Ludwisiak and created by Genti Korini. It will be exhibited at the Arsenale complex.

Bosnia and Herzegovina will take part with the project Domus Diasporica. The pavilion commissioner is Sarita Vujkovic, the installation is curated by Isidora Zivkovic, and the author is Mladen Bundalo. The project will be presented at Palazzo Malipiero.

Greece will present Escape Room. The pavilion commissioner is Fani Tsatsia of the Metropolitan Organization of Museum of Visual Arts of Thessaloniki (MOMUS). The project is curated by George Bekirakis and created by Andreas Angelidakis. The installation will be located in the Giardini.

Kosovo will be represented with Hard Teeth. The pavilion commissioner is the National Gallery of Kosovo represented by Hana Halilaj. The project is curated by Jose Esparza Chong Cuy and created by Brilliant Milazimi. The work will be exhibited at Chiesa di Santa Maria del Pianto.

North Macedonia will present Pieta in the Emergency Blankets. The pavilion commissioner is Avni Qahili. The exhibition will be curated by Tihomir Topuzovski and Amanda Boetzkes, and created by Velimir Zernovski. It will be shown at Ex Cappella Buon Pastore.

Turkiye will present A Kiss on the Eyes. The pavilion commissioner is the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts, with Basak Doga Temur as curator and Nilbar Gures as the project’s author. The installation will be located at the Arsenale.

Romania will participate with Black Seas - Scores for the Sonic Eye. The pavilion commissioner is Ioana Ciocan. The project, curated by Corina Oprea and Diana Marincu, is authored by Anca Benera and Arnold Estefan. The installation will be located in the Giardini.

Montenegro will present Out of the Blue, I’m Swept Away. The author is Sinisa Radulovic and the exhibition is curated by Svetlana Racanovic. The pavilion commissioner, located at Artenova, is Vladislav Scepanovic.

Art in Time of War

After being disqualified in 2024 because of the conflict with Ukraine, Russia returns to the Venice Biennale with the collective exhibition The Tree Is Rooted in the Sky in the Giardini.

Ukraine will continue its participation in the prestigious forum with the installation Security Guarantees.

The Islamic Republic of Iran, which has also been at the centre of a military conflict in recent days, has confirmed its participation, but the Biennale website does not list a project title or authors.

The United States will present the project Call Me the Breeze. The pavilion will be located in the Giardini.

Israel will present the project Rose of Nothingness, located at the Arsenale.