A 61ª edição da Bienal de Veneza apresentou a lista de artistas convidados para a exposição internacional In Minor Keys. A seleção reúne nomes históricos da arte contemporânea, coletivos, artistas emergentes e instituições de diferentes partes do mundo, com forte presença de artistas africanos, latino-americanos, asiáticos e da diáspora negra. A lista foi divulgada oficialmente pela organização da Bienal.
Quem foi Koyo Kouoh
A curadoria da edição ficou sob responsabilidade de Koyo Kouoh, uma das principais curadoras de arte contemporânea africana das últimas décadas. Nascida em Camarões em 1967 e falecida na Suíça em 2025, Kouoh atuou como diretora executiva e curadora-chefe do Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa, além de fundar a RAW Material Company, centro de arte e pensamento crítico sediado em Dakar, no Senegal.
Ela integrou as equipes curatoriais da documenta 12 e da documenta 13 e recebeu, em 2020, o Grand Prix Meret Oppenheim, importante prêmio suíço voltado à arte, arquitetura e crítica. Entre suas exposições mais conhecidas estão Body Talk: Feminism, Sexuality and the Body in the Works of Six African Women Artists (2015), apresentada inicialmente em Bruxelas, e Still (the) Barbarians, realizada para a EVA International, bienal da Irlanda, em 2016. Também participou da Carnegie International de Pittsburgh com o projeto Dig Where You Stand (2018).
Kouoh desenvolveu pesquisas sobre cinema africano e diplomacia cultural soviética no projeto Saving Bruce Lee: African and Arab Cinema in the Era of Soviet Cultural Diplomacy, realizado entre Moscou e Berlim.
Sua produção intelectual inclui livros e publicações fundamentais para os estudos da arte africana contemporânea, como When We See Us: A Century of Black Figuration in Painting (2022), Condition Report on Art History in Africa (2020) e Condition Report on Building Art Institutions in Africa (2012).
Durante sua passagem pelo Zeitz MOCAA, organizou exposições individuais de artistas africanos e da diáspora africana, incluindo Otobong Nkanga, Johannes Phokela, Senzeni Marasela, Abdoulaye Konaté, Tracey Rose e Mary Evans.
Lista completa de artistas participantes da Bienal de Veneza 2026
A edição reuniu 110 participantes entre artistas, coletivos, fundações e instituições. Entre os nomes presentes estavam:
- 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. - 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 1982, 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. - 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. - 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 2019, Lagos and Ikiṣẹ, 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. - Sandra Knecht
Born 1968, Buus, Switzerland. Lives in Buus, Switzerland. - Marcia Kure
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. - 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 and London, UK. - 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.
Também participaram coletivos e instituições como:
- RAW Material Company
- Nairobi Contemporary Art Institute
- G.A.S. Foundation
- blaxTARLINES KUMASI
- lugar a dudas
Artistas brasileiros na Bienal de Veneza 2026
Entre os brasileiros confirmados na exposição internacional estavam:
- Ayrson Heráclito
- Dan Lie
- Eustaquio Neves
Os três artistas desenvolvem pesquisas ligadas à memória, ancestralidade, corpo, espiritualidade e imagem, temas que dialogam diretamente com o pensamento curatorial de Koyo Kouoh.
Uma Bienal marcada pela descentralização
A seleção de artistas evidencia uma mudança importante no circuito internacional de arte contemporânea. Em vez de priorizar apenas centros artísticos tradicionais da Europa e dos Estados Unidos, a Bienal reuniu artistas ligados a contextos periféricos, práticas coletivas, histórias coloniais, espiritualidade, migração e disputas de memória.
A própria trajetória de Koyo Kouoh ajudou a consolidar essa perspectiva curatorial. Sua atuação esteve voltada à construção de instituições culturais africanas, ao fortalecimento de redes intelectuais do Sul Global e à valorização de narrativas historicamente marginalizadas no sistema da arte contemporânea.
