Abbas Akhavan's Amazonian lilies reviewed

The World of Interiors on June 1 reviewed Abbas Akhavan’s installation at the 2026 Venice Biennale as a work that is not yet finished in visual terms. The piece, housed in the Canada Pavilion, centers on giant water lilies that are expected to expand over the course of the exhibition rather than arrive fully formed at the opening. That makes the work unusually tied to time, growth and maintenance, not just display. The review described it as a “durational” project whose fullest appearance is expected later in the Biennale’s run. ### Why is this installation being described as unfinished in June? The June 1 review’s main point was that Akhavan’s lilies are meant to be seen in process. According to The World of Interiors, the leaves are still developing and the installation is expected to reach its full form closer to the end of the Biennale in 2026. The review singled out that delayed maturation as central to how the work is experienced. (worldofinteriors.com) The National Gallery of Canada says Akhavan’s exhibition, titled *Entre chien et loup*, turns the Canada Pavilion into a greenhouse for Victoria water lilies. That official description supports the review’s framing: the work depends on living plants reaching maturity inside the pavilion rather than on a fixed sculptural arrangement. (worldofinteriors.com) ### What exactly is in the Canada Pavilion? The Canada Pavilion has been reimagined as what the National Gallery of Canada calls a monumental Wardian case, a 19th-century device used to transport plants across the globe. The pavilion contains a custom pool with grow lights for giant water lilies of the genus *Victoria*, linking the installation to histories of plant circulation, empire and display. (gallery.ca) La Biennale di Venezia says the project also evokes London’s 1851 Crystal Palace, where the plant was prominently displayed. The official Biennale page adds that the lilies, native to South America, became a natural wonder of the Victorian era and were named in homage to Queen Victoria. ### How large are the lilies expected to become? (gallery.ca) The June 1 review said the leaves are expected to grow to as much as 1.5 meters in width as the installation matures. That scale is part of what makes the project hard to capture in a single opening-week image: the visual balance of the room changes as the plants expand. (labiennale.org) The Orto Botanico di Padova, which helped cultivate the plants, says *Victoria cruziana* can reach two meters in diameter in general. In this case, the reported 1.5-meter figure from the review appears to describe the expected size within the pavilion presentation. ### Where did the plants come from? (worldofinteriors.com) The National Gallery of Canada says Akhavan worked with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and the Orto Botanico di Padova to prepare the lilies. Seeds of *Victoria cruziana* were sent to Padua for germination before being moved to Venice to mature inside the Canada Pavilion. The Padua botanical garden says its staff handled the plants during their early growth stages, keeping them in warm, humid conditions until the floating leaves emerged and widened. (ortobotanico1545.it) That cultivation process is part of the work’s timeline, not just backstage preparation. ### How long will viewers have to see the work change? (gallery.ca) La Biennale di Venezia lists Abbas Akhavan’s *Entre chien et loup* at the Canada Pavilion from May 9 to November 22, 2026. The official Biennale page says the pavilion is open Tuesday through Sunday, with seasonal hours changing on October 1. That schedule matters because the June 1 review’s premise is that the installation will look different later in the exhibition. (ortobotanico1545.it) Visitors returning closer to November 22, 2026, would be seeing the lilies at a later stage of growth than early Biennale audiences. (worldofinteriors.com) (labiennale.org)