> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://hyperallergic.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Venice, Here We Come - URL: https://hyperallergic.com/venice-here-we-come/ - Published: 2026-04-25T10:00:07.000Z - Updated: 2026-04-25T10:00:08.000Z - Description: A guide to the 2026 Venice Biennale, Joan Semmel still killing it at 93, Hungary's post-Orbán art world, and much more. - Author: Hyperallergic - Tags: Weekly Newsletter, Newsletter The 61st Venice Biennale is just around the corner, and you can already tell it’s going to be a charged, eventful edition. That may be less about the art on display than the haywire world around it. Will protests overshadow the art inside the national pavilions? Will the main exhibition *In Minor Keys*, conceived by the late Koyo Kouoh, rise to the moment or shy away from it? We will have to wait and see. And see we will, as I will be reporting to you from the biennale with our editor-at-large, Hrag Vartanian, and other colleagues. Meanwhile, enjoy Hrag’s spirited roundup of the major exhibitions and events taking place in Venice in May and beyond. Also, don’t miss his online conversation with artist Jeremy Frey on April 29 (3–4pm ET). The event is free for Hyperallergic members. If you’re not a member yet, and can afford a few bucks a month, please join in to support our work as a truly independent art publication. Enjoy other must-reads in this edition, including a studio visit with the inimitable Joan Semmel, who’s still kicking ass at age 93; Lebanese artist Tania El Khoury speaking about her “revenge art” from bombarded Beirut; Ed Simon’s musings about Hans Holbein, and much more. Thanks for reading and enjoy your weekend. *—Hakim Bishara, editor-in-chief* --- [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/04/DSC06175-2-1.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/hyperallergics-guide-to-the-2026-venice-biennale/) Sculptures by Manolo Valdés in Piazza San Marco (photo Hrag Vartanian/**Hyperallergic*) ### [Hyperallergic’s Guide to the 2026 Venice Biennale](https://hyperallergic.com/hyperallergics-guide-to-the-2026-venice-biennale/) Here’s what to see and do at this year’s edition, including national pavilions, collateral exhibitions, and notable events. | Hrag Vartanian --- SPONSORED [![CTA Image](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/04/VideoDrawings_Boxing_RisingUp_Hyperallergic_4.22.2026-2.jpeg)](https://hyperallergic.com/rising-up-rocky-and-the-making-of-monuments-philadelphia-museum-art/) ****Rising Up: Rocky and the Making of Monuments** Featuring works from antiquity to today, the exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art explores the Rocky statue and its impact on the city’s culture, community, and public art. [Learn more ](https://hyperallergic.com/rising-up-rocky-and-the-making-of-monuments-philadelphia-museum-art/) --- ## News [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/04/GettyImages-2723165-2-1.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/barbara-chase-riboud-speaks-out-on-declining-us-biennale-pavilion/) Barbara Chase-Riboud (photo Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images) - Artist Barbara Chase-Riboud speaks about her decision [not to represent the US](https://hyperallergic.com/barbara-chase-riboud-speaks-out-on-declining-us-biennale-pavilion/) at the 61st Venice Biennale, noting that now is “not the moment.” - A heart-wrenching image of a tearful [family torn apart](https://hyperallergic.com/image-of-family-torn-by-ice-wins-world-press-photo-of-the-year/) by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) wins the 2026 World Press Photo Award’s top prize. - A historic $116M gift to the National Gallery of Art (NGA) will endow a new [artwork lending program](https://hyperallergic.com/historic-116m-gift-endows-lending-program-at-national-gallery-of-art/). - Satellite imagery confirms that [Azerbaijan destroyed](https://hyperallergic.com/azerbaijan-destroys-armenian-holy-mother-of-god-church-in-artsakh/) the Armenian Holy Mother of God Church in Artsakh’s former capital city of Stepanakert. - A high-speed passenger line in Mexico will be diverted after [archaeologists discovered 16 pre-Hispanic drawings and petroglyphs](https://hyperallergic.com/mexico-to-divert-train-route-after-cave-art-discovery/) along the planned route. - Beloved abstract painter and Argentine art legend [Ides Kihlen ](https://hyperallergic.com/ides-kihlen-abstract-painter-and-argentine-art-legend-dies-at-108/)[dies at 108](https://hyperallergic.com/ides-kihlen-abstract-painter-and-argentine-art-legend-dies-at-108/). --- ## From Our Critics [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/04/Gerome_Pygmalion-and-Galatea-2-2-1.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/a-blockbuster-take-on-ovids-metamorphosis/) Jean-Léon Gérôme, “Pygmalion and Galatea” (1890–92), (photo Zoe Guy/**Hyperallergic*) ### [A Blockbuster Take on Ovid’s “Metamorphosis”](https://hyperallergic.com/a-blockbuster-take-on-ovids-metamorphosis/) The Rijksmuseum exhibition raises questions about gender, sexuality, and transformation that it is not prepared to answer. | Zoe Guy ### [Hans Holbein Painted the Human](https://hyperallergic.com/hans-holbein-painted-the-human/) He surpassed all of his colleagues in the sheer depth, visceral intimacy, and empathy conveyed in his renderings of nobles, aristocrats, and thinkers. | Ed Simon ### [Jule Korneffel Finds Meaning at the End of Light](https://hyperallergic.com/jule-korneffel-finds-meaning-at-the-end-of-light/) Her paintings compress Roman mythology, Italian Renaissance paintings, color relationships, and that moment before disappearance.| John Yau ### [Tale of a Riderless Horse](https://hyperallergic.com/tale-of-a-riderless-horse/) When George Stubbs paints a horse, it comes alive. | Michael Glover ### [Leonardo Madriz’s Monuments to the Precarity of Now](https://hyperallergic.com/leonardo-madrizs-monuments-to-the-precarity-of-now/) His sculptures are a striking metaphor for the fragile equilibrium of American life. | Jonah Goldman Kay --- SPONSORED [![CTA Image](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/04/jeremy_frey_2025__5-V2-newsletter.jpeg)](https://hyperallergic.com/jeremy-frey-the-generational-impact-of-a-new-artistic-path/) ****Jeremy Frey: The Generational Impact of a New Artistic Path** Join us this coming Wednesday, April 29, for a conversation with artist and recent MacArthur Fellowship winner Jeremy Frey and Hyperallergic Editor-at-Large Hrag Vartanian. [Learn more ](https://hyperallergic.com/jeremy-frey-the-generational-impact-of-a-new-artistic-path/) --- ## Interview [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/04/DSC08721-3-1.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/joan-semmel-is-doing-her-best-work-at-93/) Joan Semmel in her Spring Street studio in 2026 (photo Hrag Vartanian/**Hyperallergic*) ### [Joan Semmel Is Doing Her Best Work at 93](https://hyperallergic.com/joan-semmel-is-doing-her-best-work-at-93/) “You say, ‘Fuck you. I’m good and you’re wrong,’” she told Hyperallergic. “This is who I am, this is what I do, and this is what I care about.”| Aaron Short ### [Tania El Khoury’s Soothing “Revenge Art”](https://hyperallergic.com/tania-el-khourys-soothing-revenge-art/) The Lebanese artist and Bard College professor spoke with Hyperallergic about her recent projects and precarious life under bombardment in Beirut. | Hadley Suter --- ## Opinion [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/04/rave-into-future-opening-2-1.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/the-future-of-museums-is-a-dance-floor/) TCS’s dance performance commissioned in response to **For Your Eyes Only* by Yasmine Nasser Diaz ### [The Future of Museums Is a Dance Floor](https://hyperallergic.com/the-future-of-museums-is-a-dance-floor/) The rave offers a temporary homeland, a space where belonging is felt rather than declared. | Naz Cuguoğlu ### [Dismantling Orbán’s 16-Year Grip on Hungary’s Art World](https://hyperallergic.com/dismantling-orbans-16-year-grip-on-hungarys-art-world/) As a Hungarian curator living in the United States, I cannot help but see my country as both a cautionary tale and a source of hope for artistic freedom. | Veronika Molnar --- ## Community [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/04/116-WestCentralAndSouthAsia-SIN-Online-Saber-Nuraldin-EPA-Images-1.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/required-reading-781/) Finalist for the World Press photo of the year showing Palestinians climbing aboard an aid truck in the Gaza Strip. (photo Saber Nuraldin, EPA Images/World Press Photo 2026) ### [Required Reading](https://hyperallergic.com/required-reading-781/) This week, a museum as a site of motherhood, the amazing and terrible ways writers make their livings, Nara Smith as a performance artist? And more. ### [A View From the Easel With Celia Paul](https://hyperallergic.com/a-view-from-the-easel-333/) “The main thing I love about my studio is that it is mine. No one can enter without permission.” ### [Art Movements](https://hyperallergic.com/art-movements-meet-the-smithsonian-american-art-museums-new-director/): [Meet the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s New Director](https://hyperallergic.com/art-movements-meet-the-smithsonian-american-art-museums-new-director/) Plus: Turner Prize shortlist announced, Print Center New York’s 2026 New Voices cohort, and a surprising acquisition backstory. ### [In Memorium: Remembering Desmond Morris, James Hayward, and Flo Oy Wong](https://hyperallergic.com/remembering-desmond-morris-james-hayward-and-flo-oy-wong/) This week, we honor a surrealist and zoologist, a monochrome abstractionist, and a pillar of Oakland’s Chinatown.