36th Bienal de São Paulo: Berlin Edition — One of the World’s Oldest Biennials Arrives at HKW

Did you know that in its storied history spanning over 70 years, the Bienal de São Paulo has never once traveled beyond the borders of Brazil? In 2026, this changes for the very first time, as the historic honor of hosting falls to Berlin’s Haus der Kulturen der Welt (HKW).

The 36th Bienal de São Paulo: Berlin Edition opened its doors on September 12 and will run through December 6, 2026. Reimagined and adapted specifically for Berlin, 32 of the 125 artistic positions from the original biennial enter into a direct dialogue with HKW’s modernist architecture.

“Not All Wanderers Follow Paths” — Conceiving Humanity as a Practice

The exhibition opens with an evocative title drawn from Brazilian poet Conceição Evaristo’s poem Da calma e do silêncio (On Calmness and Silence): “Not All Wanderers Follow Paths — Humanity as a Practice.”

Chief curator Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung approaches humanity not as an abstract concept, but as a vital, lived practice. Listening, observing, and building connections manifest not only between human beings, but also through the bonds forged with land, water, memory, flora, and other living entities. Alya Sebti, curator of the Berlin edition, translates this conceptual framework to HKW’s site enclosed by Tiergarten and the Spree River. This setting is far from coincidental: Oscar Niemeyer’s iconic building in São Paulo’s Ibirapuera Park likewise sits beside water. Two cities, two rivers, and two modernist structures… The biennial constructs this spatial parallelism with deliberate intention.

Six Curatorial Axes

While inheriting the spine of the original biennial—organized around six curatorial axes: “Frequencies of Descent and Belonging,” “Grammars of Resistance,” “Spatial Rhythms and Narratives,” “Flows of Nurture,” “Cadences of Transformation,” and “The Untamable Beauty of the World”—the Berlin edition reshapes each section in response to HKW’s spatial dynamics.

Highlighted Works

• Emeka Ogboh — The Way Earthly Things Are Going II: Renowned for installations that sonify global stock market data, the Nigerian-born artist specifically adapts this iteration to HKW’s architecture. Here, you hear the auditory presence of capitalism in the most literal sense.

• Forensic Architecture & Forensis — Delta-Delta: People’s Court I: Investigating human rights violations through architectural spatialization and data analysis, the research collective presents a simulated public tribunal where art, archival practice, and justice intersect at a singular juncture.

• Laila Hida — Sange khara: Moroccan-born Hida’s 16mm film unfolds into a hypnotic installation, weaving a multi-layered work that shuttles between water, sound, and North African geography.

• Wolfgang Tillmans: One of Berlin’s most celebrated contemporary artists appears before audiences in his home city, which now hosts a globally resonant international selection.

Cevdet Erek: The Voice of Turkey on HKW’s Ramp

For audiences following the exhibition from Turkey, there is a particularly compelling point of contact: Istanbul-born sound and installation artist Cevdet Erek. Having presented a site-specific installation at the original São Paulo Bienal, Erek’s work titled Rhythmic Ramp is repositioned onto the entry ramp of HKW for the Berlin edition. Composed of sound and geometric elements in dialogue with the architectural fabric, this intervention transports visitors across a distinct threshold of perception before they even step inside. Drawing on his background in architecture from Mimar Sinan University and sound engineering from ITU, Erek approaches the venue simultaneously as an architectural and musical object.

The Discursive Power of the Berlin Edition

Experiencing a storied biennial outside its native home demands asking foundational questions anew. How does a work conceived in São Paulo’s Ibirapuera Park mutate within a modernist structure overlooking Tiergarten? Which meanings shift, and which ones deepen?

HKW already maintains a robust affinity with Global South art and thought. Beyond serving as an organic continuation of that relationship, this exhibition marks a historic threshold as the Bienal de São Paulo steps across Brazilian borders for the first time in its history. Moments etched into cultural history sometimes arrive precisely like this: on an ordinary September day, inside a modernist sanctuary along the riverbank.