6

Artworks

That

Define

the

2026

Venice

Biennale’s

Main

Exhibition

It’s the art world’s most important art exhibition. But for 2026, the Venice Biennale arrives carrying unusual baggage. Koyo Kouoh was announced in 2024 as the curator—the first African woman to hold the role—for the 61st edition of the main show, which opens this week and runs through November. A tour de force, she had built her name connecting the international art world to artists and institutions from Africa and the Global South.

She passed away suddenly in 2025, leaving behind an artist list and a theme—“In Minor Keys”—for the five members of her curatorial team to execute. The curatorial text frames the show through a musical metaphor (a “minor key” refers to a somber musical mood) to explore the subtle and atmospheric power of art today. Despite this framing, the exhibition contains little music or sound work. The whispered rhythms and subtle melodies it references appear most clearly in human bonds across generations and in the raw materials extracted from contested land.