Nilbar Güreş will represent Türkiye at the 2026 Venice Biennale Pavilion, contributing a poetic and critical voice to the theme “In Minor Keys.” The 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, taking place in 2026, will host Güreş’s multidisciplinary practice, which spans sculpture, installation, painting, photography, video, and performance. The Türkiye Pavilion is coordinated by the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (İKSV), and this edition will be curated by Başak Doğa Temür, a leading figure in contemporary curatorial practice in Türkiye and abroad.
The Pavilion’s advisory board unanimously selected Güreş, emphasizing her empathetic, intelligent, and visually striking exploration of gender, identity, and cultural memory. Her practice, which blends lyricism with critical insight, gives visibility to marginalized communities while remaining deeply rooted in Türkiye’s complex social fabric.
Biennale Theme: In Minor Keys
Curator Koyo Kouoh has chosen In Minor Keys as the overarching theme of the 61st Venice Biennale. The concept highlights how subtle, low-toned, and nuanced voices can be transformative amid dominant and overpowering narratives. Güreş’s work aligns seamlessly with this vision, revealing resilience and endurance while quietly disrupting hegemonic stories. Her selection is seen as significant not only for Türkiye but also for the conceptual integrity of the Biennale itself.
Artistic Journey of Nilbar Güreş
Born in Istanbul in 1977, Nilbar Güreş studied painting at Marmara University’s Faculty of Fine Arts before completing an MFA in Painting and Graphics at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna, followed by art and textile pedagogy studies at the University of Applied Arts Vienna. Her practice encompasses photography, video, film, painting, performance, sculpture, installation, and textile collages, tackling themes of social injustice, gender roles, and cultural identity codes. Through humorous yet poetic symbolism, she challenges entrenched norms and expands personal narratives into broader social conversations.
Güreş has received numerous prestigious awards, including the Austrian Federal Ministry of Arts and Culture Outstanding Artist Award (2023), the Otto Mauer Prize (2014), the BC21 Art Award by Belvedere Contemporary (2015), the London Art Fair Artist Award (2018), and the Maud Mottier Prize (2021). She was invited to the International Studio & Curatorial Program (ISCP) in New York in 2012 and has since continued producing internationally, working between Naples, Vienna, and Istanbul.
Selected Recent Exhibitions
Recent solo exhibitions include Kadife Bakış (Velvet Gaze, Arter, Istanbul, 2025), Junctions (Muntafon Art Forum, Austria, 2024), Sour as a Lemon (Pasquart Art Center, Switzerland, 2021), and Overhead (Lentos Kunstmuseum, Austria, 2018). Her works have been featured in major biennials such as Sydney, São Paulo, Istanbul, Berlin, and Yokohama, and are held in institutions including MAXXI Rome, Palais de Tokyo Paris, Van Abbemuseum Eindhoven, and Malmö Konstmuseum.
Curator Başak Doğa Temür
Başak Doğa Temür, who will curate the Türkiye Pavilion, has played a key role in shaping the contemporary art scene through her work with Istanbul Modern, santralistanbul, and Arter. During her decade-long tenure at Arter, she contributed to numerous exhibitions and new productions as part of the curatorial and programming team. She also teaches at Istanbul Bilgi University and has served on various international boards and juries.
The Türkiye Pavilion at the Venice Biennale
Since 2014, the Türkiye Pavilion has been located in the Arsenale, one of the Biennale’s main exhibition venues. The 61st edition of the Venice Biennale will run from May 9 to November 22, 2026, where Nilbar Güreş’s work will represent Türkiye’s dynamic contemporary art scene on the global stage.
