Biennale

The Venice Biennale is a world-renowned institution that has been promoting new trends in contemporary arts for more than a century, offering a rich programme of exhibition, performance, training and research activities. As an institution it was founded in 1895 and the first editions took place in the Palazzo Pro Arte, later the Padiglione Italia, now the Central Pavillion located near the Giardini della Biennale, a few steps from our hotel. As early as 1907, national pavilions (now 29) began to be built near the Central Pavilion and surrounded by greenery. The historic location was joined by others in various locations around the city, such as the Arsenale.

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Culture at 360°

One of the features that makes this event stand out from the crowd is the adoption of a multidisciplinary model, which makes the Biennale a key event not only for art and architecture lovers, but also cinema, music, theatre and dance fans.

The Birth of the Venice Biennale

The Biennale finds its roots in 1895, when the first Biennial Art Exhibition in the world took place. At that time the main purpose was to support the art market and the artistic creativity in Venice and all over Italy. The Biennale was therefore born as an art exhibition, but during the 1900s it broadened its horizons to other disciplines and subjects by adding other festivals and exhibitions, in particular:

The International Festival of Contemporary Music (1930)
The International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art (1932)
The International Theatre Festival (1934)
The International Architecture Exhibition (1980)
The International Contemporary Dance Festival (1999)

The Biennale of Art and Architecture

The Biennale of Art and that of Architecture are those that literally gave the name to the event. They indeed used to take place every second year, biannually, indeed. The event mainly gravitates around the Napoleonic Gardens, in the Castello district. Here 29 pavilions are set up, each dedicated to a country, plus a Central Pavilion (formerly the Italian Pavilion). Since some year, the buildings of the Arsenale have also become part of the exhibition space of the event. Today the Biennale has approximately a 17000 m² exhibition area and it also includes separate, related events that take place in all the districts of Venice.

The Venice Film Festival

It is the oldest film festival in the world and, for sure, the most prestigious one. It was held for the first time in 1932 and it immediately was successful. For this reason it was repeated on a yearly basis since 1935. Each year, the festival presents a rich program of international films and assigns to the winner the coveted prize of the Leone d'Oro. The red carpet of the Venice Lido thus welcomes some of the most appreciated international actors and directors. The 83rd Venice International Film Festival, organised by the Venice Biennale and directed by Alberto Barbera, will take place at the Lido of Venice from 2 to 12 September 2026.

Dance, music and theatre

The multidisciplinary nature of the Venice Biennale also includes rich programmes dedicated to dance, music and theatre.

The 20th International Festival of Contemporary Dance will take place from 17 July to 1 August 2026.
The 70th International Festival of Contemporary Music will take place from 10 to 24 October 2026.
The 54th International Theatre Festival will take place from 7 to 21 June 2026.