UAE pavilion goes sonic
The UAE pavilion at the 61st Venice Biennale will centre on listening with “Washwasha,” an artwork framed around whispers, echoes and shared histories carried through sound—an invitation to engage aurally rather than visually. (thenationalnews.com) The preview presents the pavilion as a sound-first project within the Biennale’s opening programme. (thenationalnews.com)
The United Arab Emirates will turn its 2026 Venice Biennale pavilion into a listening space, with an exhibition called “Washwasha” built around sound rather than spectacle. (nationalpavilionuae.org) The National Pavilion UAE said “Washwasha,” an Arabic word meaning whispering, will run from May 9 to November 22, 2026, during the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia. Preview days are scheduled for May 6, 7 and 8. (nationalpavilionuae.org) The show is curated by Bana Kattan, with Tala Nassar as assistant curator, and brings together six artists: Mays Albaik, Jawad Al Malhi, Farah Al Qasimi, Alaa Edris, Lamya Gargash and Taus Makhacheva. The pavilion is at the Arsenale’s Sale d’Armi and is commissioned by the Salama bint Hamdan Al Nahyan Foundation with support from the United Arab Emirates Ministry of Culture. (universes.art) The organizers say the exhibition looks at “contemporary soundscapes in the UAE” and how sound carries memory, migration, rapid change and long ties to place. That fits a Biennale edition titled “In Minor Keys,” which La Biennale says will run across the Giardini, the Arsenale and other Venice sites. (nationalpavilionuae.org) (labiennale.org) The Venice Biennale is one of the art world’s biggest recurring exhibitions, and national pavilions usually compete for attention through objects, images and architecture. The United Arab Emirates is instead foregrounding listening as the main way into the work. (labiennale.org) (nationalpavilionuae.org) For the United Arab Emirates, 2026 will mark its ninth participation in the International Art Exhibition in Venice. The National Pavilion UAE says its program is focused on curating “untold stories” about the country’s arts and architecture on a high-profile international stage. (nationalpavilionuae.org 1) (nationalpavilionuae.org 2) This year’s Biennale also carries the curatorial vision of Koyo Kouoh, whose exhibition title, “In Minor Keys,” remains in place after her death. La Biennale said it would carry out the 2026 exhibition with the full support of Kouoh’s family. (labiennale.org) When the pavilion opens in Venice in May, visitors will be asked to do something art crowds are not always trained to do: stand still and listen. (nationalpavilionuae.org)
