The 36th edition of the Bienal de São Paulo only takes place in September 2025, but the event's concept and the names that will make up its curatorial team have already been announced by the Fundação Bienal. Nem todo viandante anda estradas - Da humanidade como prática will be the theme of the exhibition, which will once again occupy the Ciccilo Matarazzo pavilion, in Ibirapuera Park. According to the official announcement, the theme was inspired by the poem "Da calma e do silêncio", by the Brazilian writer Conceição Evaristo.
The concept: the estuary metaphor
"The central proposal of this Bienal is to rethink humanity as a verb, a living practice, in a world that demands reimagining relationships, asymmetries and listening as the foundations of coexistence, based on three curatorial fragments/axes. The metaphor of the estuary, a place where different currents of water meet and create a space of coexistence, guides the curatorial project, inspired by Brazilian philosophies, landscapes and mythologies. This concept reflects the multiplicity of encounters that have marked Brazil's history and proposes that humanity unite and transform itself through attentive listening and negotiation between distinct beings and worlds," explains the institution's website.
Who is curating
General curatorship will be in the hands of the Cameroonian Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung, who will have as co-curators Alya Sebti (Morocco), Anna Roberta Goetz (Switzerland) and Thiago de Paula Souza (Brazil), as well as co-curator Keyna Eleison (Brazil) and communication and strategy consultant Henriette Gallus (Germany).
Four extra weeks and a tributary in Bom Retiro
The Fundação Bienal also announced that the show will gain an additional four weeks, and will run from 6 September 2025 to 11 January 2026. In addition, Casa do Povo, in Bom Retiro, will act as a tributary of the show, hosting a programme of artistic performances.
