Vasari Art Codex

Khaled Sabsabi on Representing Australia at the 61st Venice Biennale

Khaled Sabsabi, the artist representing Australia at the 61st Venice Biennale (2026), will exhibit works both in the Australia Pavilion in the Giardini and in the main Biennale exhibition titled "In Minor Keys." His pieces explore spirituality, migration, and shared humanity through Tasawwuf (Sufi) sensibilities, emphasizing flux and collective experience. Sabsabi is the first Australian artist to have work in both the national pavilion and the main exhibition in the same year, and he honors the curatorial vision of the late Koyo Kouoh.

museum exhibitions schedule Feb 25, 2026 visibility 4 link 2 artists

Khaled Sabsabi—who had his Australia Pavilion cancelled and reinstated—will also exhibit in main Venice Biennale show

Khaled Sabsabi has achieved a historic milestone as the first Australian artist to be selected for both a national pavilion and the Venice Biennale’s main international exhibition. After a tumultuous period in which his appointment to the Australia Pavilion was cancelled and then reinstated following political controversy, Sabsabi will now present his work 'conference of one’s self' in the Giardini alongside a separate contribution to the central show. Both projects are deeply rooted in Tasawwuf (Sufism) and themes of spiritual enlightenment and communal unity.

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