Venice Biennale 2026: The Seeds Koyo Kouoh Sowed, and The Tree We are Living Under

Titled In Minor Keys, the 61st Venice Biennale, conceived by Koyo Kouoh before her untimely passing in May 2025, opens to the public on 9 May 2026, bringing together over 140 exhibitions across the city, foregrounding voices and practices often pushed to the margins. Rejecting condescension, it tunes into quieter registers, seeking the dignity of all living things. [Read on]

In line with the Biennale’s approach, In Minor Keys brings together artists who work on the boundaries of form on their own terms. Their practices blend into society seamlessly, as the accommodation of daily life is central to their work. Morrison's words, invoked by Kouoh, articulate the edition's deepest refusal of perpetual crisis.

“In our myths, in our songs, that’s where the seeds are. It is not possible to constantly hold onto crisis. You have to have the love and you have to have the magic, that’s also life.” – Toni Morrison, 1977

In Minor Keys spreads across the whole of Venice. Over 140 exhibitions, the two anchor venues sit at the eastern end of Venice, roughly a ten-minute walk apart along the waterfront.

The Giardini

The Giardini is the historic heart of the Biennale. A 19th-century park housing around 30 permanent national pavilions alongside the Central Pavilion, each a sovereign architectural statement from its country.

View of the Giardini della Biennale. Photo by Andrea Avezzu. Courtesy to La Biennale di Venezia

The Arsenale

The Arsenale is a medieval shipyard complex, vast brick halls and canal-side spaces that become some of the most dramatically charged exhibition rooms in the art world during Biennale season.

Arsenale di Venezia, Italy. Photo by Andrea Avezzu. Courtesy to La Biennale di Venezia

This year, In Minor Keys includes over 100 national participations. Among them, six countries make their Biennale debut: 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 Vietnam.

Beyond these anchors, In Minor Keys includes over 30 collateral events scattered across Venice, in palazzi, courtyards, churches, and canalside spaces.

Planning

Planning by area is a form of art practice as an audience, moving through neighbourhoods, not itineraries, and letting the city itself become part of the work. And we at ArtRabbit have certainly turned this into our own specific Olympic practice. There is nothing we celebrate more or are more obsessed with, than mapping out neighbourhoods, areas and cities by their art gems, secret art spots, cultural happenings, and guiding people through them, like a treasure hunt. Not just for this reason, the Venice Biennale remains one of our personal highlights in the art calendar.

So this time around, once again, the ArtRabbit integrated map covers every national pavilion and collateral event across Venice. Hop from one show to the next with ease, using our App or website.

Map view of ArtRabbit Map Integration for 61st La Biennale di Venezia, In Minor Keys.

However you choose to move through the Biennale, whether in a single afternoon in the Giardini or over a week across the city, tickets are available directly on the Biennale's website, with both single and multiple access options to suit your itinerary.

Guided tours are also available at both main venues, and reserving a slot in advance is strongly recommended. With a guide, a passage through the Arsenale's darkened halls or the Giardini's labyrinthine pavilions becomes a more considered and immersive experience.

Getting around

Getting around is a one-of-a-kind experience. Venice’s vaporetto network includes key stops at Giardini and Arsenale. Operated by ACTV, it serves as the city’s primary transport system. The floating buses are essential for traversing Venice, particularly along the Grand Canal, with tickets available for single rides (€9.50) or, more economically, in 24-hour to 7-day passes.

A vision that endures

Koyo Kouoh planted the seed, and we are only now walking through it. In Minor Keys is her final act of generosity. A Biennale rooted in the belief that what has been overlooked, hushed, and pushed to the margins carries within it the most vital seeds.

This May, Venice becomes the orchard. Explore it via the ArtRabbit App, pavilion by pavilion, neighbourhood by neighbourhood, until you have tasted everything she meant for you to find.

Browse events, get directions between venues, and discover nearby galleries or pop-up spaces along the way.

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