Traveling exhibition 36th Bienal – Berlin

The Bienal de São Paulo comes to Germany for the first time. With the exhibition Not All Travellers Walk Roads – Of Humanity as Practice, the Fundação Bienal de São Paulo opens at Haus der Kulturen der Welt (HKW) in Berlin, one of the new international stops on the 36th edition’s traveling exhibition program. The exhibition opens on September 11, from 5:30 pm to 10 pm, and runs from September 12 to December 6, 2026, and is presented by Petrobras.

The Berlin edition is curated by Alya Sebti, co-curator of the 36th Bienal de São Paulo. In addition to works shown in São Paulo, it presents pieces conceived specifically for the occasion, with adapted works and site-specific interventions, featuring more than thirty participants. Works arriving in Berlin were part of an exhibition seen by 784,000 visitors in São Paulo between September 2025 and January 2026.

The participants in this edition are Akinbode Akinbiyi, Alberto Pitta, Aline Baiana, Amina Agueznay, Ana Raylander Mártis dos Anjos, Cevdet Erek, Chaïbia Talal, Christopher Cozier, Emeka Ogboh, Forensic Architecture / Forensis, Gervane de Paula, Juliana dos Santos, Julianknxx, Laila Hida, Leiko Ikemura, Leo Asemota, Lidia Lisbôa, Lynn Hershman Leeson, Malika Agueznay, Manauara Clandestina, Mao Ishikawa, Maria Auxiliadora, María Magdalena Campos-Pons, Ming Smith, Mohamed Melehi, Olu Oguibe, Rebeca Carapiá, Sérgio Soarez, Tanka Fonta, Theo Eshetu, Théodore Diouf, and Wolfgang Tillmans.

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Opening Weekend Program

Friday, September 11
6:15–7 pm: Performance by Julianknxx: Attuned in the Bantutronic (Sylvia Wynter Foyer)
7:30–8:15 pm: Opening speeches (Miriam Makeba Auditorium)
8:30–10 pm: Concert by the Ray Lema Quintet (Miriam Makeba Auditorium)
10 pm–12 am: DJ set by Emeka Ogboh (Hirschfeld Bar)

Exhibition open until 10 pm.

Saturday, September 12
12–1 pm: Exhibition tour with Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung and Alya Sebti (in English; meeting point: desk in the Sylvia Wynter Foyer)
2–3 pm: Conversation with Aline Baiana (Sylvia Wynter Foyer, in English)
3–4 pm: Conversation with Vilanismo and Akinbode Akinbiyi, moderated by Billy Fowo (Sylvia Wynter Foyer, in English)
4–6 pm: Conversation and participatory dance practice with Felix Dompreh, Pascale ‘Baba’ Altenburger, and Nora Amin ‘H’ Patten: On Dance as a Common Ground for Critical Practices (Haunani-Kay Trask Room, in English)
6–7 pm: Poetry reading by Abena P.A. Busia (Sylvia Wynter Foyer, in English)
7–9 pm: Film screening and conversation with Tuấn Andrew Nguyễn: The Unburied Sounds of a Troubled Horizon (2022) (Safi Faye Room, in English)

Exhibition open until 7 pm.

Sunday, September 13 (Family Program)
12–1 pm: Exhibition tour with the Fundação Bienal de São Paulo team (in Portuguese; meeting point: desk in the Sylvia Wynter Foyer)
1:45–2:15 pm: Family tour with Lisa Vasvari and Clara Kramer: Art Love Affair (in German; meeting point: desk in the Sylvia Wynter Foyer)
3–4 pm: Exhibition tour with Emilienne Fernande Bodo (in German; meeting point: desk in the Sylvia Wynter Foyer)
3–6 pm: Kinderdisco Special in collaboration with KUYUM Tanzplattform (Haunani-Kay Trask Room, Angie Stardust Foyer)

Exhibition open until 7 pm.

Admission is free throughout the opening weekend (September 11–13).

Service
36th Bienal de São Paulo – Not All Travellers Walk Roads – Of Humanity as Practice
chief curator: Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung
co-curators: Alya Sebti, Anna Roberta Goetz, Thiago de Paula Souza
co-curator at large: Keyna Eleison
strategy and communications advisor: Henriette Gallus
deputy co-curators: André Pitol, Leonardo Matsuhei

Berlin Traveling Exhibition – Haus der Kulturen der Welt
curator: Alya Sebti
exhibition design: Gisele de Paula
opening: Sept 11, Fri, 5:30 pm – 10 pm
Sept 12 – Dec 6, 2026
Wed – Mon, 12 pm – 7 pm
Haus der Kulturen der Welt
John-Foster-Dulles-Allee 10
10557 Berlin, Germany
admission: €10 / reduced €7
Free entry on Mondays and the first Sunday of every month, as well as during the opening weekend (11–13 September) and closing weekend (5–6 December)
www.hkw.de