Koyo Kouoh, curator of the upcoming Venice Biennale, dies

Curator Koyo Kouoh, named last December as the first curator of African origin at the Venice Biennale, which is scheduled to open in 2026, has died at the age of 57.

The information was announced last Saturday (10) in a brief statement released by the Biennale itself, which said it was "shocked to learn of the sudden and premature death of Koyo Kouoh".

"His death leaves an immense void in the world of contemporary art and in the international community of artists, curators and academics, who appreciated his extraordinary intellectual and human commitment," added the Ca' Giustinian cultural institution.

The Zeitz Mocaa museum in Cape Town, where she was executive director and chief curator, stressed that the death was sudden and did not release details of the cause.

A native of Cameroon, Kouoh was appointed to lead the next Venice Exhibition by the Biennale's board of directors in December 2024. The presentation of the title and theme of the 61st exhibition was scheduled for May 20. A project on which the African had already worked in recent months "with passion, rigor and vision".

"The entire Venice Biennale expresses its most sincere condolences to her family, friends and all those who shared with her a journey of research and critical thinking on contemporary art," the note concludes.

At the time of Kouoh's appointment, organizers highlighted that the decision was "a recognition of a broad horizon of vision at the dawn of a day filled with new words and perspectives," emphasizing that "her perspective as a curator, scholar, and influential public figure meets with the most refined, young, and disruptive minds."

Following the announcement of his death, Venice Mayor Luigi Brugnaro, vice-president of the Biennale Foundation, expressed his condolences and said it had "deeply affected and saddened" him.

"She was not only a great artist and a brilliant mind on the international stage, but also a woman capable of listening, of building bridges between distant cultures," he added.

Brugnaro also recalled that everyone welcomed "with enthusiasm her appointment as curator of the 2026 Art Biennial, certain that she would bring a new and creative vision, in tune with the spirit of the event".

"On my behalf and on behalf of the Municipal Administration, I express my most sincere condolences to her family, friends and all those who had the privilege of knowing and working with her. I will consult with President Pietrangelo Buttafuoco and the Board of Directors so that her extraordinary example continues to be an inspiration and stimulus for the 2026 Art Biennale," concluded the Italian mayor.