Vatican’s sound pavilion named
The Vatican’s pavilion for the 2026 Venice Biennale will foreground sound and includes artists such as FKA twigs and Brian Eno, framing the Holy See’s presentation around Saint Hildegard of Bingen’s legacy (theartnewspaper.com). Broader Biennale analysis also signals a curatorial tilt toward living, mid‑career artists and more global representation, with Rirkrit Tiravanija representing Qatar and assembling musicians, chefs, and artists from the Arab world ( ).
The Vatican’s 2026 Venice Biennale pavilion will center on sound, with FKA twigs, Brian Eno and Patti Smith among 24 invited artists. The Holy See said the project is called *The Ear is the Eye of the Soul* and will unfold across two Venice sites: the Mystical Garden of the Discalced Carmelite in Cannaregio and the Santa Maria Ausiliatrice Complex in Castello. The Biennale runs from May 9 to November 22, 2026. The exhibition is framed around Saint Hildegard of Bingen, the 12th-century Benedictine abbess, composer, poet and healer. The Vatican said visitors will listen through headphones to new commissions made with Soundwalk Collective, alongside an instrument that “listens” to the garden in real time. Hans Ulrich Obrist of the Serpentine and curator-publisher Ben Vickers are co-organizing the pavilion with Soundwalk Collective. Other named participants include filmmaker Jim Jarmusch, artist-poet Precious Okoyomon, artist Otobong Nkanga and organist Kali Malone. The Vatican announcement lands as the 61st Venice Biennale takes shape under *In Minor Keys*, the late curator Koyo Kouoh’s exhibition for the main international show. La Biennale di Venezia said on February 25 that the exhibition will include 111 invited participants from “many different geographies and regions.” Artnet’s analysis of the 2026 artist list found a roster weighted toward living, mid-career artists rather than a heavily historical survey. It reported that more than 90 percent of the participants are living artists. National pavilions are also widening that geographic spread. Qatar’s 2026 presentation, *Untitled (a gathering of remarkable people)*, is led by Rirkrit Tiravanija and brings together Sophia Al Maria, Tarek Atoui, Alia Farid and Fadi Kattan. That makes the Vatican pavilion legible as part of a broader Biennale season: more living artists, more cross-border teams, and more exhibitions built around performance, listening and gathering rather than object-heavy national showcases. The Holy See is doing that with a medieval saint, contemporary musicians and a garden turned into a listening device.
