Vietnam’s first Venice pavilion

Vietnam will open its first national pavilion at the 61st Venice Biennale in May 2026, joining the world’s biggest recurring art exhibition for the first time. (artasiapacific.com) The pavilion is titled “Viet Nam: Art in the Global Flow” and will be installed at Ca’ Giustinian Faccanon, a restored Venetian palace that has recently reopened after more than a year of restoration. (artasiapacific.com) (vietnam.vnanet.vn) La Biennale di Venezia says the 61st International Art Exhibition, “In Minor Keys,” will run from May 9 to November 22, 2026, with preview days on May 6, 7, and 8. (labiennale.org) Vietnam is one of seven countries making a first appearance in the 2026 edition, according to the Biennale’s official list of national participations. La Biennale says the exhibition will include 100 national participations and 31 collateral events. (labiennale.org) That matters because the Venice Biennale is organized around national pavilions as well as the central international exhibition, so a first pavilion is not just an invited artwork but a state-backed entry into the event’s country-by-country map. La Biennale says countries without a permanent pavilion can join by submitting a letter from the relevant government authority. (labiennale.org) Art Asia Pacific reports that curator Đỗ Tường Linh’s exhibition will bring together works by 10 artists, including Lê Hữu Hiếu, Nguyễn Thành Chương, Đoàn Thị Thu Hương, Bùi Hữu Hùng, and Trịnh Tuân. The magazine says the show is framed around the development of contemporary Vietnamese art in a global context. (artasiapacific.com) One confirmed project is Lê Hữu Hiếu’s installation “Tằm,” or “silkworm,” which Art Asia Pacific says will include 12 sculptural guardian deities, a house-like structure, a large lacquer painting, and live silkworms. The work uses jackfruit wood, gold leaf, and eggshell, and centers on memory, creation, and cycles of life. (artasiapacific.com) Lê is not new to Venice. Art Asia Pacific says he held a solo exhibition at Arsenale Nord in 2021, and Vietnam News says his Biennale project is the focal point of the new national pavilion. (artasiapacific.com) (vietnamnews.vn) The 2026 Biennale is also unfolding under unusual circumstances. La Biennale says curator Koyo Kouoh died on May 10, 2025, and the institution later said it would carry out “In Minor Keys” with the support of her family, following the project as she conceived it. (labiennale.org 1) (labiennale.org 2) So Vietnam’s debut arrives in a Biennale already marked by transition: a new pavilion, a newly restored venue, and an exhibition proceeding after the death of its curator. The opening in Venice is set for May 2026. (artasiapacific.com) (labiennale.org)