The Biennale ★★★

A gondola rowing lesson in Venice
An interactive work in the Arsenale at the 2005 Venice Biennale art show.

Every two years, Venice hosts the world's biggest and greatest exhibition of modern and contemporary art

Arsenale of Venice
The water gateway to the Arsenale (naval yards) of Venice.
Every two years, in the spring of every odd-numbered year (2015, 2017, etc.), Venice hosts perhaps the pre-eminent exhibition of contemporary art in the entire world, the Venice Biennale—or, to be precise, the Esposizione Internazionale d’Arte.

In 2015, the 56th annual Biennale art show officially runs May 9 to November 22—though events actually started in February.

Started in 1895, this international art exhibition now receives more than 300,000 visitors every year (well, every-other year).

In concept, it's a bit of a throwback to the old world's fairs and and expos focused on technology, in that each nation mounts its own show.

Between 70 and 80 countries usually participate, and each country gets a padiglione (pavilion) or exhibition space in which to show off their greatest contemporary artistic talents.

The traditional space, and core of the Biennale, is inside the Arsenale (the Renaissance-era—yet still functioning—navy yards) and the nearby Giardini Pubblici public gardens—way out on the eastern end of Castello—but increasingly shows are curated in spaces scattered all across town.

It also now lasts from the spring until late November, and has begun incorporating film, music, and dance (and those frequently continue in the even-numbered years as well).

Art from the 2009 Venice Biennale
"Art" from the 2005 Venice Biennale.
The core program, however, is still the visual arts. Sometimes countries use the Biennale to mount a retrospective of a well-established living artist; sometimes they use it to highlight cutting edge works by a few of the hottest young talents.

It's invariably interesting, and with so many hundreds of artists (the official expo usually has around 100, but plenty of smaller, unaffiliated shows pop up across town) and thousands of works on display, you're bound to like at least some of it.

Keep in mind this is modern art, so there is far more video art, oddball sculptures, and high-concept installation pieces than your traditional, straightforward paint-on-canvas or block-of-marble-pleasingly-carved type of art.

This can make for a wonderful vacation from all the Old Masters in Italy's museums, but it can also lead to potential damage to your peepers from all the inevitable eyeball rolling.

(Last time I attended, the Arsenale's first large space featured a gargantuan chandelier, maybe 20 feet across and 30 feet high, which hung from the center of the ceiling all the way down until it nearly brushed the floor, glittering slightly in the gloom. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be made entirely from shrink-wrapped tampons. Ah, art.)

Tips & links

Details

La Biennale di Venezia ★★★
Offices: Palazzo Ca' Giustinian Lolin, San Vidal 2893, San Marco
Main exhibition space: Arsenale, Castello

tel. +39-041-521-8711
www.labiennale.org

OPEN

Open Tues-Fri 10am–6pm, Fri-Sat 10am-8pm

ADMISSION

€25 (single admission), €30 (2-day pass), €80 (annual pass)
Museum Pass: No

TRANSPORT

Vaporetto: Arsenale (1, 4.1, 4.2, B) or Giardini (1, 2, N, 4.1, 4.2, 5.1, 5.2, 6, 8)

TOURS
Tours
Take tour: Take a guided tour of the Biennale with an expert in contemporary art:

How long does the Accademia take?

Planning your day: Seriously, if you're in town when the Biennale is on, you must take at least 2 hours to visit at least the works in the Arsenale space, despite the steep admission—if for no other reason than you normally cannot get into these rooms at the Arsenale.

Venice itineraries

Nearby sights, dining, hotels
Venice links & resources

Share this page

Intrepid Travel 25% off

Search ReidsItaly.com

Details

La Biennale di Venezia ★★★
Offices: Palazzo Ca' Giustinian Lolin, San Vidal 2893, San Marco
Main exhibition space: Arsenale, Castello

tel. +39-041-521-8711
www.labiennale.org

OPEN

Open Tues-Fri 10am–6pm, Fri-Sat 10am-8pm

ADMISSION

€25 (single admission), €30 (2-day pass), €80 (annual pass)
Museum Pass: No

TRANSPORT

Vaporetto: Arsenale (1, 4.1, 4.2, B) or Giardini (1, 2, N, 4.1, 4.2, 5.1, 5.2, 6, 8)

TOURS



Useful links
Train tix

Shortcuts to popular planning sections:

Airfares, Cars, Trains, Tours, Packages, Cruises, Lodging, Itineraries, Info, Packing, Prep, Comm

Follow ReidsItaly
Follow ReidsItaly on Twitter  Join the ReidsItaly fan page  Follow Reids Italy Adventures blog