Venice Biennale Jury Named
- The U.S. Pavilion at the Venice Biennale is due to open in two weeks, with curator Uslip praising the show’s execution. - The Biennale announced its International Jury with Solange Oliveira Farkas as president, joined by Zoe Butt, Elvira Dyangani Ose, Marta Kuzma, and Giovanna Zapperi. - The Awards Ceremony is scheduled for Saturday 9 May, and the jury roster was officially published ahead of openings ( ).
The Venice Biennale has named the five-member jury that will decide its top 2026 art prizes, with Solange Oliveira Farkas serving as president. (labiennale.org) La Biennale di Venezia said the panel also includes curator and writer Zoe Butt, curator Elvira Dyangani Ose, Yale School of Art professor Marta Kuzma, and University of Geneva professor Giovanna Zapperi. The board approved the jury on the recommendation of exhibition curator Koyo Kouoh. (labiennale.org) The awards ceremony is set for Saturday, May 9, 2026, the day the 61st International Art Exhibition opens to the public. The preview runs May 6 through May 8, and the show continues through November 22. (labiennale.org, labiennale.org) The jury announcement lands as Venice moves into its opening stretch, when national pavilions, the main curated exhibition, and collateral shows all come online across the city. This year’s edition, titled *In Minor Keys*, is being staged at the Giardini, the Arsenale, and other Venice venues. (labiennale.org, labiennale.org) The scale is large even by Biennale standards. La Biennale says the 2026 edition includes 110 invited participants in the main exhibition, 100 national participations, and 31 collateral events. (labiennale.org, labiennale.org) Farkas comes to the presidency after leading Associação Cultural Videobrasil and serving as artistic director of the Videobrasil Biennial from 1983 to 2024. Her fellow jurors bring institutions in Thailand, Abu Dhabi, New Haven, and Geneva into the room, giving the panel a broad museum and academic footprint. (labiennale.org) The timing also matters for the United States pavilion, which is due to open in two weeks. Curator Jeffrey Uslip told CNN the Alma Allen exhibition is “the smoothest exhibition I’ve curated in 30 years” despite months of scrutiny over the U.S. selection process. (kvia.com, state.gov) By May 9, the question shifts from who made the shortlist and who organized the pavilions to what the jury rewards once the exhibition opens. Venice has now published the names that will make that call. (labiennale.org, labiennale.org)
