The Teiger Foundation has pledged $750,000 to be granted in two parts, in support of the 2026 Venice Biennale, which is scheduled to open in May.
The announcement came on Monday when the New York-based organization made the pledge. The funding will contribute both to the exhibition’s production and to the participating artists. Of the total amount, $500,000 will go directly toward mounting the Biennale, while the remaining $250,000 is earmarked for artists producing new work and traveling to Venice. The latter will be administered by the group American Friends of Zeitz MOCAA, which formerly included late curator Koyo Kouoh.
Kouoh was chosen as the main curator of the 2026 Venice Biennale. However, she passed away in May 2025, shortly before the theme of the event was revealed. Titled “In Minor Keys”, the theme of the 2026 Venice Biennale will be implemented by a team of five veterans of art and academics. Larissa Harris, executive director of the Teiger Foundation, released a statement affirming the grants’ goal to help realize Kouoh’s original vision, saying: “Koyo Kouoh’s In Minor Keys centers artists who make their own worlds, and these worlds are rooted in solidarity, poetry, and place. Her curatorial practice has long championed global and local networks and kinships, and the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia extends that commitment to the international stage. Teiger Foundation is proud to support the team she assembled … as they pour their own immense creative energies into making Koyo Kouoh’s vision a reality alongside the professionals of La Biennale di Venezia.”
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Founded in 2008 by collector David Teiger, the Teiger Foundation has previously supported the Venice Biennale in 2013, 2022, and 2024. Biennale president Pietrangelo Buttafoco said the renewed support would help sustain Kouoh’s legacy while strengthening the exhibition’s future direction.
