Kosovo Pavilion at the Venice Biennale

The Kosovo Pavilion at the 2026 Venice Biennale is housed in the Chiesa di Santa Maria del Pianto, a magnificent octagonal church overlooking the northern Venetian lagoon and completed in 1658. Closed to the public for more than fifty years, the church now reopens permanently to the city through a gradual process of restoration and renewed cultural accessibility.

Regarding the exhibition showcasing previously unseen works by the artist Brilant Milazimi, curator Jose Esparza Chong-Cuy tells us: “A long line of people swerves across expansive mountains. In Brilant Milazimi’s panoramic painting, the crowd seems to merge with the vast terrain. Echoing historical and contemporary scenes of displacement, the immersive composition depicts frail bodies lingering in the landscape. They patiently wait and stand still. They mark time, but persevere, with their teeth tightly clenched. Waiting is not abstract in Kosovo. For decades, mobility has been determined by the legacy of a brutal war that further confused international borders and resulted in delayed and provisional acknowledgments. This prolonged suspension of time reflects a lived indeterminacy shaped by political transition, contested recognition, and a sovereignty in continued negotiation.”

Without directly intervening in the historic architecture, the exhibition design engages in dialogue with the space through a series of carefully arranged wooden structures. A family of easels appears to support the eight mural paintings as if moving in a slow procession, silently advancing through the church. Complementing them, a group of kneeling benches and a series of display panels allow additional works to inhabit the niches and chapels distributed throughout the octagonal plan.