Observer’s Guide to the Must-Visit Biennials and Triennials of 2025
While the Venice Biennale remains the undisputed grand dame of international biennial exhibitions, the Biennale phenomenon has skyrocketed since the late ’90s, with cities worldwide embracing contemporary art as a potent spark for community activation. These events, adopted as strategic levers for cultural and economic growth, haven’t been without their share of controversy as political winds and policies shift over time. Still, biennials offer a stage for cutting-edge contemporary art, highlighting emerging trends and providing a pulse-check on the current state of the global art scene.
With the art world’s frenetic calendar back in full swing after its annual late-December lull, Observer has rounded up a list of the leading biennials and triennials sure to make waves in 2025.
Prospect New Orleans (through February 2, 2025)
Launched in 2007, Prospect New Orleans is a triennial exhibition spotlighting artists from the Global South. Many projects focus on local injustices and challenges, inviting participants to delve into the layered heritage of the city. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, for example, this triennial played a crucial role in prompting the local community to question and redefine the role of artists in rebuilding the city. Under the leadership of co-artistic directors Miranda Lash and Ebony G. Patterson, the 2025 edition of Prospect New Orleans will probe our collective future, grappling with climate change, colonial legacies, and evolving notions of belonging and home. With fifty-one participating artists, “Prospect.6” asks whether New Orleans—a predominantly BIPOC city shaped by destructive weather, coastal erosion, histories of violence and an enduring spirit of celebration—might serve as a testing ground to imagine the “future” many other places are only beginning to face. Artists include established names like Mel Chin, Raúl de Nieves and Joan Jonas, alongside rising stars in the biennial/triennial circuit such as Arturo Kemeya, Karyn Olivier, Tuấn Andrew Nguyễn and Maleko Mongosi.
The Havana Biennial (through February 28, 2025 )
Established in 1984 as one of the first biennials to feature artists from Latin America and the Caribbean, the Havana Biennial quickly expanded its vision. By the second edition, it had embraced a more global perspective, welcoming artists from around the world and cementing its status as a major event on the international art calendar. In recent years, however, political turmoil in the country has sparked unrest, leading many invited artists to withdraw. The 15th edition, with its theme “Shared Horizon,” seeks to explore notions of “coexistence” and “peace,” guided by a “spirit of celebration and facing the possibility of reunions”—even as the island grapples with enduring and complex challenges. This year, the Biennial features the work of 240 artists from fifty-seven countries, with a significant showing of Cuban talent.
The Sharjah Biennial (February 16, 2025 – June 15, 2025)
Initially produced by the Sharjah Department of Culture and Information starting in 1993, the Sharjah Biennial became a cornerstone initiative of the Sharjah Art Foundation in 2009. The curatorial lineup for Sharjah Biennial 16 includes Alia Swastika (director of the Biennale Jogja Foundation, Yogyakarta), Amal Khalaf (director, Cubitt, London, and curator at large, Public Practice, Serpentine Galleries, London), Megan Tamati-Quennell (curator of modern and contemporary Māori and Indigenous art, New Zealand), Natasha Ginwala (artistic director, COLOMBOSCOPE, curator and writer, Colombo and Berlin) and Zeynep Öz (independent curator, Istanbul and New York). Each has crafted an individual exhibition, forming a tapestry of narratives that intersect and resonate across Sharjah’s historical venues, blending contemporary art with the city’s unique cultural context. This year’s approach embraces hybridization, continuous exchange and dialogue as essential tools to navigate the complexities of today’s globalized world. By integrating modes of song, lament and ritual, the Biennial seeks to explore and exercise cross-cultural alliances, fostering connections between enduring traditions and contemporary needs.
The Hawai‘i Triennial (February 15, 2025 – May 4, 2025)
Founded in 2014 and inspired by Hawaii’s unique role as a crossroads for diverse peoples and ideas, the Hawai‘i Triennial connects communities across the islands, the Pacific and beyond. Curated by independent curators Wassan Al-Khudhair, Noelle M.K.Y. Kahanu and Binna Choi (director of Casco Art Institute, Utrecht), the 2025 edition (HT25)—titled “ALOHA NŌ”—will unfold across exhibition sites on O‘ahu, Hawai‘i Island and Maui and feature forty-nine artists and art collectives from across the islands and the Pacific. This year’s Triennial embraces “aloha” as a traditional practice preserved by the people of Hawai‘i for generations, encompassing profound love, truth-telling and the interconnectedness between humans, nature and other species. Through fierce resistance, resolute solidarity, tender care and profound healing, “ALOHA NŌ” invites audiences to reflect on these enduring principles. Participants in the 2025 edition include international names such as Allora & Calzadilla, Art Labor, Teresita Fernández and Gisela McDaniel, alongside emerging voices from the region, offering a vibrant mix of perspectives.
The Boston Public Art Triennial (May 22, 2025 – October 31, 2025)
The inaugural Boston Public Art Triennial is set to debut this May with fifteen captivating commissions spread across the city, guided by artistic director Pedro Alonzo, curator Tess Lukey and a Curatorial Advisory Group. Under the theme “The Exchange,” the Triennial aims to position public art as a dynamic force for connectivity, wellbeing and economic vitality, pairing commissioned works with public art experiences and a robust program of community events. The roster of participating artists includes Julian Charrière, Beatriz Cortez, Nicholas Galanin, Cannupa Hanska Luger and Delcy Morelos, and “The Exchange” promises to reimagine Boston’s sometimes drab public spaces as sites of creativity.
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The Liverpool Biennial (June 7, 2025 – September 14, 2025)
Launched in 1998 and known for transforming unexpected spaces, historical buildings and art galleries, the Liverpool Biennial is the U.K.’s largest free festival of contemporary visual art, designed to activate the city and its local art community by fostering interactions between international artists and Liverpool’s rich historical context. Curated by Marie-Anne McQuay, the 13th edition (titled “BEDROCK”) draws inspiration from the region’s sandstone, a defining feature of its architecture, which serves as a metaphor for the social foundations of Liverpool—its people, places and values. Anchored in the city’s distinctive geography and underlying beliefs, the 2025 Biennial will feature Christine Sun Kim, Sheila Hicks, and Anna Gonzalez Noguchi, among others, promising a vibrant exploration of the elements that ground and unite the community.
The Helsinki Biennial (June 12, 2025 – September 21, 2025)
Rooted in the significance of its maritime setting, the Helsinki Biennial unfolds across Esplanade Park, Helsinki Art Museum and Vallisaari—a former military island just a 15-minute ferry ride from the city center, renowned for its historical significance and extraordinary biodiversity. Curated by Blanca de la Torre and Kati Kivinen, the third edition draws deeply from this unique context to confront ecological issues and explore sustainability in a holistic manner. With the curatorial theme and title “Shelter,” the Biennial examines the delicate relationship between humanity and the natural world, shifting away from human-centric perspectives. Featuring approximately thirty-five artists and collectives from Finland and beyond, the event will debut a striking array of works, with nearly half consisting of site-specific commissions premiering in the city.
The Berlin Biennale (June 14, 2025 – September 14, 2025)
Since its founding in 1996, the Berlin Biennale has cemented its reputation as one of the most vital international platforms for examining and challenging the pressing issues of our time through art. Curated by Zasha Colah, the 13th edition takes inspiration from the urban foxes that roam Berlin’s inner city, using their presence as a metaphorical lens to explore the concept of “fugitive”—the cultural capacity of a work of art to resist and defy lawful violence. “This illegality, this foxing, this traversing of unjust laws, sometimes happens within the imaginary a joke opens, or are glimpsed in the flicker of artworks,” Colah explains in her curatorial statement. The Biennale deliberately moves away from labels like Indigenous or nomadic, instead embracing what Colah calls a “restoration of lines and channels of dignity” while investigating the opacities and illegibilities of artworks, taking our collective illiteracy as a starting point.
SITE SANTA FE International (June 27, 2025 – January 12, 2025)
SITE SANTA FE International (formerly the SITE SANTA FE Biennial) will present its 12th edition under the curation of Cecilia Alemani. Titled “Once Within a Time,” this iteration forgoes a singular central theme in favor of a polyphony of voices and practices, drawing deeply from local stories, myths and lived experiences tied to the region’s rich history. Inspired by the concept of circular history, the exhibition takes its name from Once Within a Time, a film by Godfrey Reggio, Santa Fe’s legendary experimental filmmaker, echoing its blend of the fantastical and the mundane to craft a vivid narrative of human experience across time. “The 2025 edition will extend beyond the usual venue of the SITE SANTA FE building, also occupying a series of historical buildings and places around the city, anchoring in this way the Biennial’s in Santa Fe territory and community, and immersing visitors in its Fe’s rich history and stratified heritage,” Alemani told Observer in a recent interview.
Bergen Assembly (September 9, 2025 – November 9, 2025)
Originating in 2009 from the Bergen Biennial Conference and officially launched in 2011, Bergen Assembly was created to challenge and rethink how art is both made and experienced. Now established as Norway’s leading triennial, it consistently brings international artists to Bergen for thought-provoking exhibitions. Curated by artist and researcher Ravi Agarwal and writer and visual culture scholar Adania Shibli alongside the Bergen School of Architecture, the 2025 edition will explore the possibilities and limitations of transformative shifts that shape both our lived experiences and artistic practices. The list of participating artists is set to be announced next month.
The Aichi Triennale ( September 13, 2025 – November 30, 2025)
Founded in 2010, the Aichi Triennale has become a cornerstone of Japan’s international art scene and a vital platform for the entire region, deeply rooted in the culture of Aichi and Nagoya while fostering meaningful engagement with the local community. Under the artistic direction of Hoor Al Qasimi (president and director of the Sharjah Art Foundation), the sixth edition, titled “Time Between Ashes and Roses,” will reflect on the shifting states and connections between ecological environments, human activity and the narratives that bind them. Drawing inspiration from an Adonis poem, the exhibition seeks to visualize and interrogate the contemporary human-environment divide, addressing the layered complexities and responsibilities of environmental justice. The 2025 Triennale will feature works by thirty-six artists from around the globe, including Wangechi Mutu, Dala Nasser, Ogawa Machiko, Oki Junko and Adrián Villar Rojas.
The Istanbul Biennial (September 20, 2025 – November 23, 2025)
Since its inception in 1987, the Istanbul Biennial has served as a vibrant meeting point in the arts, bridging diverse cultures with audiences in the city. However, recent years have seen this Biennial embroiled in controversy, particularly amid the country’s increasingly fraught political climate. A scandal erupted over the 2024 edition after the advisory board initially recommended Dafne Ayas as curator, but Iwona Blazwick was appointed instead—reportedly because Ayas refused to deny the Armenian genocide. Blazwick later stepped down, leading to the Biennial’s postponement to 2025. Now, the 18th edition, curated by Christine Tohmé, is set to unfold in three phases over three years, from 2025 to 2027. The first chapter, which recently issued an open call for artists, will explore themes of self-preservation and futurities, examining how material conditions and a pervasive lack of safety shape personal relationships, bodily autonomy and community identity.
The Göteborg Biennial (September 20, 2025 – November 30, 2025)
Started in 2001, the Göteborg International Biennial for Contemporary Art is the largest biennial in Sweden, hosted since 2007 by the Röda Sten Konsthall (a contemporary art center in the district of Majorna ), with primary support from the City of Göteborg and Västra Götalandsregionen. Under the curatorship of Christina Lehnert, the 13th edition will unfold across art centers and collaborative venues throughout Gothenburg and the broader West Sweden region. The curatorial theme and artist lineup have yet to be announced.
Okayama Art Summit (September 26, 2025 – November 11, 2025)
The Shanghai Biennale (November 8, 2025 – March of 2026)
Launched in 1996, the Shanghai Biennale holds the distinction of being China’s first Biennial and remains one of the region’s most influential art events. This year’s edition, titled “Does the Flower Hear the Bee?,” will be led by Canadian curator Kitty Scott, whose résumé includes stints with Documenta 12, the 2018 Liverpool Biennale and the Canadian Pavilion at the 57th Venice Biennale. Her appointment is a historic first for the Shanghai Biennale, as she becomes the event’s inaugural returning curator. Taking over the entire Power Station of Art, the exhibition will delve into new forms of sensory communication, fostering dialogue and harmony with non-human intelligences, from animals to plants. “Artworks provide us with a privileged space for doing so in an embodied and interconnected way, forming stronger bonds within and between communities and in harmony with a more than human world,” Scott remarked during a November press conference.