Two Filipino artists head to Venice
Artists Demi Padua and Pongbayog will present a two‑person show titled “Pangarap: Two Visions, One Filipino Dream in Italia” at the Venice Biennale, bringing contrasting Filipino perspectives to the global stage (peopleasia.ph). The announcement frames their participation as a return engagement and places their exhibition among other national presentations at Biennale Arte 2026 (peopleasia.ph).
Filipino artists Demi Padua and Pongbayog are set to stage a two-person exhibition in Venice during Biennale Arte 2026. (peopleasia.ph) PeopleAsia reported the show is titled “Pangarap: Two Visions, One Filipino Dream in Italia.” It said the presentation marks a return to Venice for both artists after their 2024 appearance in the “Personal Structures” exhibition at Palazzo Mora. (peopleasia.ph) The 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia runs from May 9 to November 22, 2026, with preview days on May 6, 7, and 8. The official title of the 2026 edition is “In Minor Keys.” (labiennale.org) La Biennale di Venezia said the 2026 exhibition will proceed with the curatorial plan set by Koyo Kouoh and with the support of her family. That places Padua and Pongbayog’s Venice show in a year when the broader Biennale program is moving ahead under an already announced framework. (labiennale.org) The Venice Biennale is one of the art world’s biggest recurring international exhibitions, and national pavilions and parallel shows draw artists, curators, collectors, and museums to the city each cycle. La Biennale di Venezia says the institution was founded in 1895. (labiennale.org ) Padua and Pongbayog were already part of the wider Filipino presence in Venice in 2024, when Filipino artists showed both in the official Philippine Pavilion and in parallel exhibitions around the city. Tatler Asia and the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s lifestyle coverage both placed Pongbayog and other Filipino artists in that larger 2024 Venice circuit. (tatlerasia.com) (lifestyle.inquirer.net) Pongbayog, the artist name of Florante Paghari-on, is a self-taught painter from Polomolok, South Cotabato, according to his gallery profile and CREATEPhilippines. A 2024 report by the Asia News Network described him as known for black-and-white hyperrealist portraits. (df-artagency.com) (createphilippines.com) (asianews.network) Publicly available art-market profiles identify Demi Padua as a contemporary Filipino artist with an exhibition record tracked by Artnet and Artsy, though PeopleAsia’s announcement provides the clearest current details on the Venice project itself. For now, the most concrete date on the calendar is the Biennale’s May 2026 opening in Venice. (artnet.com) (artsy.net) (labiennale.org)
