On 25 February 2026, at Ca’ Giustinian in Venice, La Biennale di Venezia announced the invited participants for the 61st International Art Exhibition, In Minor Keys, conceived by the late Koyo Kouoh. Kouoh accepted the invitation to curate the 61st International Art Exhibition in October 2024. Following her untimely passing on 10 May 2025, La Biennale confirmed that In Minor Keys would be realised exactly as she conceived it, with the full support of her family. The title and curatorial framework, first presented in May 2025, articulated a project shaped by resonance, affinity, and unexpected convergences across geographies and generations. The 2026 announcement marks the continuation of this vision in its fullest form.

On view from 9 May to 22 November 2026 (preview 6–8 May), the exhibition will unfold across the Giardini, the Arsenale, and sites throughout Venice. Among the 111 invited participants, spanning individual artists, duos, collectives, and artist-led organisations, a significant number share current or historic affiliations with Zeitz MOCAA. This strong representation reflects the museum’s sustained commitment to artists from Africa and its diaspora, and to a relational curatorial practice grounded in long-term engagement, experimentation, and dialogue.

We celebrate the artists with whom we’ve had the pleasure of collaborating over the years and honour their continued global impact with their participation in In Minor Keys, curated by Koyo Kouoh.

Permanent Collection Exhibitions

• Nicholas Hlobo, iimpundulu zonke ziyandilandela (2017), featured in the permanent collection exhibition Two Together (2019). iimpundulu zonke ziyandilandela was originally created for the 54th Venice Biennale (2011)
• Ebony G. Patterson, Selections from the Collection (2024)

Group Exhibitions

• Akinbode Akinbiyi, Indigo Waves and Other Stories: Re-Navigating the Afrasian Sea and Notions of Diaspora (2022)
• Sohrab Hura, Indigo Waves and Other Stories: Re-Navigating the Afrasian Sea and Notions of Diaspora (2022)
• Buhlebezwe Siwani, Seekers, Seers, Soothsayers (2023)
• Édouard Duval-Carrié, When We See Us: A Century of Black Figuration in Painting (2022)
• Mmakgabo Mmapula Helen Sebidi, When We See Us: A Century of Black Figuration in Painting (2022)

Solo Exhibitions

• Otobong Nkanga, Acts at the Crossroads (2019)
• Senzeni Marasela, Waiting for Gebane (2020)
• Alfredo Jaar, The Rwanda Project (2020)
• Johannes Phokela, Only Sun in the Sky Knows How I Feel – (A Lucid Dream) (2021)
• Tuna Andrew Nguyen, The Other Side of Now (2024)
• Nolan Oswald Dennis, UNDERSTUDIES (2024)
• Cauleen Smith, Afflict the Comfortable, Comfort the Afflicted (2025) currently on view at Zeitz MOCAA until 4 October 2026.

Artists-In-Residence

• Kemang Wa Lehulere, Laying Bare (2019)
• Thania Petersen, KASSARAM (2021)
• Berni Searle, On Site (2024).

Discursive Programming

• Torkwase Dyson, hosted talk with Khanyisile Mbongwa, and moderated by Siddhartha Mitter (2025)
• G.A.S. Foundation, a conversation between artist Yinka Shonibare CBE RA and Zeitz MOCAA’s late Executive Director & Chief Curator, Koyo Kouoh at Zeitz MOCAA (2022)

Exhibition Design

• Ilze Wolff, exhibition design and scenography, When We See Us: A Century of Black Figuration in Painting (2022)