Venice Biennale curatorial team reveal how they are bringing the late Koyo Kouoh's vision to life

At a Venice briefing reported by The Art Newspaper on 25 February 2026, the curatorial team for the 61st Venice Biennale detailed how they are implementing the late Koyo Kouoh’s exhibition “In Minor Keys.” The Biennale will run from 9 May to 22 November 2026 in the Arsenale and the Central Pavilion in the Giardini and will include 111 artists and artist collectives, many from the Global South. Kouoh—who died in Basel in May 2025 and was the first woman from Africa selected to curate the Venice Biennale—framed the show as a “radical connection” to art’s role in society rather than a direct commentary on crises. Team members including Rory Tsapayi, Gabe Beckhurst Feijoo, and Rasha Salti described organizing principles such as Shrines, Procession/Invocation, Schools, Enchantment, Physical and Spiritual Rest, the Threshold, and the Creole Garden, and recounted an April working session in Dakar at Raw Material Company.

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