Pavilions We Loved in Venice
Editor-at-Large Hrag Vartanian and critic Aruna D’Souza’s highlights from the biennale, plus six artworks inspired by the Odyssey.
The Venice Biennale made headlines in the spring, from the triumph of late curator Koyo Kouoh’s In Minor Keys to the historic pro-Palestine strike. Now that the dust has settled, Editor-at-Large Hrag Vartanian and critic Aruna D’Souza sat down to talk about the national pavilions — good, bad, and in-between. Today, we’re starting with the pavilions they loved. (Stay tuned for parts two and three.)
Also, if you’re looking for a break from Christopher Nolan discourse, Staff Writer Anna Lee has just the ticket: a round-up of six artworks inspired by Homer’s epic, including Romare Bearden’s indelible retelling of the Odyssey through the lens of African-American life and culture.
Read on for Senior Editor Valentina Di Liscia’s latest installment of Art Movements, a conversation with Bengali-American artist Rina Banerjee, and more. And our longstanding Required Reading column is migrating over to the books newsletter, a bi-weekly dispatch on all things art and literature by yours truly. Subscribe to get it in your inbox on Monday!
—Lakshmi Rivera Amin, associate editor
National Pavilions We Loved at the Venice Biennale
You’ve followed our on-the-ground reporting from the consequential 2026 Venice Biennale, running through November 22. You’ve read, I hope, our reviews of Koyo Kouoh’s posthumous main exhibition In Minor Keys, Alma Allen’s unmemorable United States pavilion, and Gabrielle Goliath’s Elegy — displayed at a church after being cancelled by the South African pavilion. You’ve engaged with our coverage of Dayanita Singh’s project at the State Archives of Venice; Arthur Jafa and Richard Prince’s hit-and-miss collaboration; an interview with Khaled Sabsabi, whose Australian pavilion was censored under pressure from pro-Israel groups and later reinstated; and much more from the international exhibition and its collateral events.
But we never got to tell you what we really thought of the national pavilions, and which ones you should visit or avoid. As the punishing heat waves of this summer taper off, this might be the perfect time to visit the biennale, if you haven’t already. Below is the first part of a conversation between Editor-at-Large Hrag Vartanian and critic Aruna D’Souza on which pavilions they liked, disliked, or remain torn about. They begin with a provocative argument in favor of national pavilions. Did they suddenly become nation-state stans? No, hold on, hear them out. — Hakim Bishara, editor-in-chief | Hrag Vartanian and Aruna D’Souza
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Radiant Geometries on view at the Moody Center for the Arts, through Dec. 19, 2026
Exploring contemporary expressions of math, science, and technology in Indigenous knowledge systems, this group show includes works by Melissa Cody, Nanibah Chacon, Jordan Ann Craig, Patricia Domínguez, Sara Flores, Kite, Natalia Montoya Lecaros, Patrick Martinez, Cisco Merel, Caroline Monnet, and Eamon Ore-Giron.
News
Record-breaking heatwaves across France damage beloved flowers at Monet's gardens in Giverny. The entire stock of multicolored blossoms lining the main alley has withered under the intense heat, sunshine, and persistent drought.
Features
Six Epic Artworks Inspired by “The Odyssey”
From J.M.W. Turner to Romare Bearden, visual artists have long turned to Homer’s masterpiece and the power of myth as sources of inspiration. | Anna Lee
Read MoreCommunity
Beer With a Painter: Rina Banerjee
“When you give up that power to the paint, it becomes your partner, helping you to make something beautiful,” said the Bengali-American artist at her studio in Dumbo. | Jennifer Samet
Read MoreArt Movements: Wolf Kahn Foundation Opens New Space in NYC
A permanent home for the artist’s archives, MoMA PS1 is getting a new café, which museum scored a sweet early Rothko, and more in Art Movements. | Valentina Di Liscia
Read MoreMember Comment
—Monique on “Art Problems: Why Are There So Many Toxic People in the Art World?”
From the Archive
A Brief History of Underwear in Art
Author Nina Edwards weaves a seamless tale of the social, visual, and economic dimensions of the hidden garments that literally underpin our lives. | Rhea Nayyar
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