The 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia will take place from 9 May to 22 November 2026, under the theme In Minor Keys, following the curatorial vision led by the late Cameroonian-Swiss curator Koyo Kouoh. Paper Tears, a work by Barcelona-based artist Claudia Pagès Rabal, curated by Elise Lammer, has been selected to portray Catalan culture in the Eventi Collaterali of the Biennale, organised by the Institut Ramon Llull.
The concept of duality, a central aspect of Claudia Pagès Rabal’s ongoing research, is explored here through the rich history of watermarks created during papermaking and their transition from fresh to salt water, weaving new connections between what is visible and what lies beneath the surface.
The Catalan artist focuses on watermarks preserved in the archive of the Museu Molí Paperer de Capellades with papers dating back to the 12th century, ranging from northern Italy to Spain. The proposal contrasts this rich archive of historical watermarks—made by shaping silver or copper wire and stitching it onto the screen of the mould used in papermaking—with a collection of the artist’s own drawings, derived from original watermarks, which are enlarged and animated through projections. These drawings will share the space with a sound composition and a video.
Paper Tears aligns with Koyo Kouoh’s curatorial vision by creating a multilayered installation that both literally and metaphorically resonates with “minor keys”, in the form of sound, light, and narrative.
Selection process
The project highlights Catalan culture at the Venice Biennale of Art is selected through a process organised by the Institut Ramon Llull and evaluated by an expert jury. This year’s jury was chaired by Pepe Serra, director of the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya (MNAC). The members included Cristina Anglada, independent curator and cultural manager, co-curator of the Opening section at ARCOmadrid 2023–2024 and 2024–2025; María Berríos, Director of Conservation and Research at MACBA; Amanda de la Garza, Deputy Artistic Director of the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía and former Director General of Visual Arts and of the Museo Universitario Arte Contemporáneo (MUAC) at UNAM (Mexico); Chus Martínez, Director of the Institute Art Gender Nature (IAGN) at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland (FHNW), Basel, and Artistic Director of the 36th Ljubljana Biennial of Graphic Arts; Filipa Ramos, lecturer at IAGN (FHNW Basel) and Artistic Director of Loop Festival; curator of the project “Catalonia in Venice | BESTIARI | Carlos Casas” at the Venice Biennale of Art 2024; and Eva Sòria, Director of Cultural Sectors at the Barcelona Institute of Culture (Barcelona City Council).
Regarding the selected project, the jury stated: “The history of paper, linked to water and to Jewish and Muslim communities, resonates with the history of our present. The history of 15th-century Catalonia echoes the story of today's world. At the same time, the project understands and embraces the theme—In Minor Keys—outlined by Koyo Kouoh. It employs personal and indirect artistic language to delve into the social and political fabric eloquently, but without being prescriptive.” They also noted that “it is a project of remarkable quality, which we are confident will captivate a wide audience, regardless of their previous knowledge of the work, the artist, or contemporary art”.
The jury also wished to highlight the exceptional quality of the finalist projects: “We are astonished by the vitality, beauty and urgency of the proposals, and we are pleased to see that Catalan culture’s participation in the Venice Biennale of Art inspires such a high level of artistic and professional excellence.” The four finalist projects were: Fulgor, curated by Rosa Lleó; We are Resonance, curated by Pilar Soler Montes; El món cantarà... en una vibració, curated by Sonia Fernández Pan; and Resonant Body, curated by Renan Laru-an.
The Institut Ramon Llull organises and produces Catalonia in Venice, the participation of Catalan culture in the Eventi Collaterali of La Biennale di Venezia. It has taken part in the Art Biennale since 2009 and the Architecture Biennale since 2012.
Claudia Pagès Rabal is a visual artist, performer and writer based in Barcelona. In her practice, Pagès Rabal intertwines words, bodies, music and movement, producing visual and linguistic devices such as video installations, works on paper, or books, in which points of interest converge, drawing from linguistics, psychoanalysis, and decolonial studies.
Her work has been exhibited in institutions including Chisenhale, London (2025); Manifesta 15, Barcelona (2024); IVAM, Valencia (2024); Sculpture Center, New York (2024); CA2M, Madrid (2023); Fundació Joan Miró, Barcelona (2023); Tabakalera, Donostia (2022); Vleeshal, Middelburg (2022); MACBA, Barcelona (2022); Kunstverein Braunschweig, Braunschweig (2021); and the Sharjah Art Foundation, United Arab Emirates (2018). She will take part in the 18th Istanbul Biennial (2025) and has two forthcoming solo exhibitions at mumok, Vienna (2025) and Index, Stockholm (2025). Her debut novel, Més de dos aigües, was published in Catalan by Empúries Narrativa in 2024.
Elise Lammer ((b. Lausanne, Switzerland) is the Director of Halle Nord in Geneva. Her practice focuses on the role of public and domestic space, and the construction and expression of identity. Transdisciplinary in nature, her work adopts a transgenerational and intersectional approach to question and reassess narratives that have been monolithically and unilaterally integrated into history, while simultaneously examining these issues from a contemporary perspective.
As an author, researcher and curator, she has contributed to numerous international projects, including at the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum (Lisbon); mumok – Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig (Vienna); MACRO (Rome); Schinkel Pavillon (Berlin); Centre culturel suisse (Paris); MAMCO (Geneva); Kunsthaus Glarus (Glarus); Musée cantonal des Beaux-Arts (Lausanne); and the Istituto Svizzero di Roma (Rome), among others.
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