India Pavilion opens at the 61st Venice Biennale: All you need to know

After its absence for seven long years, India has made a spectacular comeback on the global art scene. On Thursday, May 7, the India Pavilion launched its exhibition at the 61st International Art Exhibition at the Venice Biennale, which is the country’s first appearance in the show after 2019.

India Pavilion launches at 61st Venice Biennale: Here’s what you need to know

Titled Geographies of Distance: Remembering Home, the exhibition takes place in the historic Arsenale. The exhibition, curated by Amin Jaffer, delves into the changing meaning of home, not as a fixed physical space, but as an emotional one defined by memories, displacement and fast-changing times. The initiative is a joint venture between the Ministry of Culture, the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre and Serendipity Arts Foundation.

The exhibition brings together the works of five artists who create pieces using organic materials that have a personal meaning.

Sumakshi Singh: The artist’s haunting installation titled Permanent Address consists of a scaled-up replica of her razed family home in Delhi, carefully made using embroidered thread alone.

Asim Waqif: Chaal is an enormous bamboo structure that uses scaffolding in cities as its muse, reflecting the incessant transformation of Indian cities.

Ranjani Shettar: In Under the Same Sky, Ranjani offers ephemeral installations hanging from the ceiling, evoking flowers and their growth and artisanal processes.

Alwar Balasubramaniam: The sculptural panels, Not Just for Us, are made using clay and soil from rural Tamil Nadu to deal with environmental transformations.

Skarma Sonam Tashi: With his work titled Echoes of Home, Skarma uses papier-mâché to explore the architecture of Ladakh and ecology.

The opening ceremony was graced by the presence of Union Culture and Tourism Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat along with Nita Ambani and Isha Ambani. Gajendra said that the pavilion showcased an India that is “both rooted and forward-looking.” Travellers visiting Italy will be able to see the exhibit between May 9 and November 22, 2026.

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