Koyo Kouoh has been selected as the curator for the 61st Venice Biennale in 2026, making her the first African woman to take on this prestigious role. Kouoh follows in the footsteps of Nigerian curator Okwui Enwezor, who was the first African-born curator to lead the event in 2015.
The Cameroonian-Swiss curator serves as the Executive Director and Chief Curator of the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary African Art (MOCAA) in Cape Town. Under her guidance, the museum has become a leading institution for contemporary African art, housing the continent’s largest collection of contemporary art and has made significant contributions to the arts, both on the African continent and internationally, with an array of publications.
Her recent curatorial works include When We See Us: A Century of Black Figuration in Painting (2022) as well as Shooting Down Babylon (2022), the first monograph on South African artist Tracey Rose. Other key publications include Breathing Out of School: RAW Académie (2021) and Condition Report on Art History in Africa (2020).
Previously, she was the founding artistic Director of RAW Material Company, an institution dedicated to art, knowledge and society in Dakar, Senegal. She also contributed to the curatorial teams for documenta 12 (2007) and documenta 13 (2012).
Kouoh’s appointment as curator of the 61st Venice Biennale marks a new chapter for the event, with her curatorial vision promising to bring fresh and dynamic perspectives to one of the world’s most important art platforms. Her leadership is set to offer a unique, inclusive and bold approach to the global art conversation when the Biennale opens in 2026.
