Bengal Biennale announces curators for its second edition commencing in 2026-2027

When the first edition of the Bengal Biennale commenced in the year 2024-2025, the city and the state as a whole had seen a wonderful coming together of art – each different from the other in style, genre, and period. It not only gave the modern artists a platform but also re-introduced legends to the present generations. After its conclusion, the event is now slowly taking steps towards curating the second edition to be held in 2026-2027 and the first in the many steps, was to announce the curator. During a cosy gathering at the Birla Academy of Art and Culture, the trustees of Gameplan foundation, the organisers of the Bengal Biennale, made this announcement.

Who helms the Bengal Biennale for 2026- 2027?

The debut held in the twin centres of Kolkata and Santiniketan was curated by Siddharth Sivakumar. As he steps down for this edition from his curatorial position, he reflects on the grand debut, “when we first imagined the Bengal Biennale it was never meant to be a fixed idea but a seed of possibilities that would draw from Bengal soil from its past and present and grow in ways that none of us could really predict.”

Trustee Jeet Banerjee at the onset mentioned the criteria for having the curators on board. He mentions, “The primary condition was that the curator had to be from Kolkata. There is enough curatorial talent in the state and Bengal Biennale gives them a platform to showcase their talent too. Moreover the Biennale is not a copy of other biennale’s but an original platform focussing on the talents available here.”

Keeping in mind the parameters, the two curators for this upcoming edition are Chander Haat, an artist’s collective; and Ritika Biswas, independent curator and artistic researcher. While the Chander Haat, located in Sarsuna is all about community-based work along with the members continuing their individual practices, and of late making name through their contribution in designing famous Durga Puja’s; Biswas, on the other hand, works with the ecological criticism, kinships, necropolitics and questions of justice. While the practice looks and seem very divergent from each other, the crux of their messaging is still the same. Moreover, it is also a challenge that the curators took upon themselves to co-curate and align their individual practices together for the enhancement of the core designing of the Biennale.

Ritika who returns to Kolkata for a curatorial project after 12 years comments, “I left because I was very curious and I have returned because I am very curious. Working with Chander Haat for over a month has been very enriching. It’s a phase where I unlearn and re-learn everything.” Chander Haat, represented by Bhabatosh Sutar, Mallika Das Sutar and Pradeep Das where Sutar mentions, ‘We use Durga Puja as a platform to connect people to art. Alongwith our other projects, we aim to keep the individuality alive and yet form a collective, community-based artistic practice.

What started as an inspiration from the 2016 Shanghai Biennale that went with the theme ‘Arguments, Counterarguments and Stories’ straight from Ritwik Ghatak’s film Jukti Tokko Goppo after years of deliberation, logistics, and delay finally saw the light of the day in the first Bengal Biennale in 2024, an event which was much appreciated by art lovers, artists, curators and the people and now is all set to revive its grandeur in the winters of 2026.

For more updates, join/follow our WhatsApp, Telegram and YouTube channels.