Venice Biennale previews land
Previews are painting the 2026 Venice Architecture Biennale as a cross‑disciplinary festival with six must‑see shows set to make Venice an ‘epicentre of cultural innovation’ (ourculturemag.com). Vietnam will make a historic debut with its own independent project and exhibition space — the country’s first standalone presence at the Biennale (en.vietnamplus.vn).
Le Stanze della Fotografia on San Giorgio Maggiore is staging a 300‑work Horst P. Horst retrospective, "The Geometry of Grace," running 21 February–5 July 2026 as one of the major collateral shows in the Biennale season. (cini.it) Austria’s national pavilion has commissioned performance artist Florentina Holzinger for a city‑spanning project titled SEAWORLD VENICE, curated by Nora‑Swantje Almes, with preview days scheduled 6–8 May and public display 9 May–22 November 2026. (annarosathomae.com) Creative Australia reconfirmed Khaled Sabsabi and curator Michael Dagostino for the Australia Pavilion, a high‑profile national project that reviewers have flagged among the Giardini highlights for the 61st Biennale. (artreview.com) Preview coverage across outlets — including Our Culture’s March 29 feature and guides in Domus and Wallpaper* — has consolidated a short list of citywide exhibitions that extend the Biennale beyond Giardini and Arsenale into palazzi, churches and foundations. (ourculturemag.com) La Biennale di Venezia confirms 99 National Participations and lists the Socialist Republic of Vietnam among seven first‑time participating countries for the 61st International Art Exhibition, which runs 9 May–22 November 2026 (preview 6–8 May). (labiennale.org) Vietnam’s standalone show, billed as "Art in the Global Stream" and curated by Đỗ Tường Linh, names Lê Hữu Hiếu among the lead contributors and will occupy the Ca’ Faccanon/Ca’ Giustinian Faccanon palace near Rialto — a restored Venetian Gothic site of roughly 1,100 sq.m reused for the Biennale program. (visit-venice-italy.com) (vietnamnews.vn)
