The Biennale of Sydney is expanding out west, but a major Sydney gallery is missing out
The Biennale will be heading to Penrith for the first time in the new year, with Penrith Regional Gallery joining the fold amid a fresh push to reach new audiences in Sydney's west. The gallery will be featured alongside returning venues including the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Campbelltown Arts Centre, the Chau Chak Wing Museum at the University of Sydney (which was recently named in Time Out's list of the world's most underrated museums), and the iconic restored White Bay Power Station, which the Biennale launched as the city's new major arts venue for it's 2024 edition.
However, one major gallery has been passed over as an exhibition venue, with the Museum of Contemporary Art missing out for the first time since 1998. Speaking to the Sydney Morning Herald, the Biennale's new Artistic Director, Hoor Al Qasimi, said that the decision came down to curatorial priorities. She told the SMH's Linda Morris: 'The MCA is a great space, but it's not location wise. It's not something that fits into what I want to do. I'm always interested in people who maybe don't realise that the Biennale is free, and it's for them.'
Outside the main exhibitions, the MCA will be delivering the Biennale's public programs. (And in the meantime, the MCA is gearing up to open its major winter exhibition, Cerith Wyn Evans .... in light of the visible from June 6, 2025.)
With more than 20 years experience, Al Qasimi's curatorial approach centres on the histories of each place and multidisciplinary programming, with a collaborative perspective and emphasis on supporting experimentation and innovation in the arts.
Speaking on the 2026 theme, Al Qasimi said: ' Rememory connects the delicate space between remembering and forgetting, delving into the fragmented and forgotten parts of history, where recollection becomes an act of reassembling fragments of the past – whether personal, familial or collective.'
She added: 'Through the defiant act of sharing, seeing, and understanding, the artists and cultural practitioners I've invited to participate explore the hidden effects of history and how it continues to shape the present in an evolving and consuming conversation.'
The first batch of participating artists and collectives announced today is a diverse bunch of creatives from across Australia and the globe, including Sydney-based artist Abdul Abdullah, who just won the esteemed Packing Room Prize for the 2025 Archibald Prize (which you can visit now at the Art Gallery of NSW). Of the 37 artists announced today, 15 First Nations artists from around the world have been commissioned to create new work for the 25th Biennale of Sydney. You can find all of the participating artists and collectives listed on the Biennale's website.
Additionally, the Biennale has appointed two Community Ambassadors for the 2026 edition with arts worker, creative producer, and mentor Claudia Chidiac and writer, educator, cultural worker, and creative producer Paula Abood. They will provide specialist advice on local community engagement in the Greater Western Sydney area and liaise on behalf of the Biennale of Sydney between different cultural groups and organisations.
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