Oman’s Venice Artist

Oman has picked Haitham Al Busafi to represent the country at the 2026 Venice Biennale, giving the Sultanate a new national pavilion artist for one of the art world’s biggest stages. (artasiapacific.com) ArtAsiaPacific reported the selection on April 22, 2026. La Biennale di Venezia says the 61st International Art Exhibition, curated by Koyo Kouoh under the title *In Minor Keys*, runs from May 9 to November 22, 2026, with pre-opening days on May 6, 7, and 8. (artasiapacific.com) (labiennale.org) Al Busafi’s pavilion project is planned as an installation built from sand, metal, and sound. Oman Observer said the work is titled *Zina*, and Al Busafi linked it to the Omani practice of decorating horses with silver adornment. (artasiapacific.com) (omanobserver.om) Oman’s state media described Al Busafi as both the pavilion’s artist and curator, and said the project is backed by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth. In remarks carried by Omani outlets, he said the Biennale theme’s emphasis on “quiet tones and lower frequencies” shaped his approach. (timesofoman.com) (omanobserver.om) The Venice Biennale mixes a large central exhibition with country-run national participations. La Biennale says the 2026 edition includes 100 national participations and 31 collateral events, with seven countries making their first appearance and El Salvador entering for the first time with its own pavilion. (labiennale.org) That structure gives smaller states and newer cultural programs a chance to define themselves through a single room, building, or installation. Oman’s selection of an artist who also works across architecture, design, and curating fits a format that often rewards spatial, immersive work over wall-bound painting. (labiennale.org) (artasiapacific.com) Al Busafi has been used before as a cultural envoy for Oman in international design events. Times of Oman and Oman Observer reported that his project *Memory Grid* represented Oman at the London Design Biennale 2025 and won the exhibition’s best design award. (timesofoman.com) (omanobserver.om) Older reporting also shows his practice moving between architecture and digital media. In 2017, Times of Oman described him as a 31-year-old who ran architecture and production companies in Qurum and was experimenting with virtual reality as an art form. (timesofoman.com) For Oman, the Venice commission extends a run of state-backed appearances that use design and installation to present national identity abroad. For Venice visitors next spring, it means Oman’s pavilion will be encountered not just as an image on a wall, but as a space built from matter, sound, and a specific story about ornament and memory. (omanobserver.om) (artasiapacific.com)