Venice Biennale
International arts exhibition in Italy
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| 2024 | Pietrangelo Buttafuoco assumes the presidency of the Venice Biennale, taking over from Roberto Cicutto. |
| 2024 | Continuing the new even-year schedule for the Art Biennale. |
| April 28 2024 | Pope Francis became the first pope to visit the Venice Biennale, visiting the Pavilion of the Holy See in the Prison Giudecca. |
| February 2024 | Thousands of artists signed a petition calling for Israel's exclusion from the Biennale due to its military campaign in Gaza, which was rejected by the Biennale organizers. |
| February 13 2024 | The Holy See Press Office announced Pope Francis would attend the Venice Biennale. |
| 2022 | The Venice Biennale international exhibition budget increased to nearly $19 million, showing significant financial growth from the 2013 edition. |
| 2022 | Art Biennale adjusts its exhibition schedule to occur in even-numbered years. |
| 2022 | Italian curator Cecilia Alemani curated the Biennale with the theme 'The Milk of Dreams', inspired by Leonora Carrington's book. |
| 2021 | The exhibition schedule was modified, with the Art Biennale now taking place in even years and the Architecture Biennale in odd years. |
| 2020 | Roberto Cicutto becomes president of the Venice Biennale, serving from 2020 to 2024. |
| 2020 | COVID-19 pandemic forced postponement of the Art Biennale, disrupting its traditional scheduling. |
| 2019 | Four countries participated for the first time: Ghana, Madagascar, Malaysia, and Pakistan. |
| 2019 | Last Art Biennale held in an odd year before the scheduling change. |
| 2019 | American-born curator Ralph Rugoff directed the Biennale with the theme 'May You Live In Interesting Times'. |
| 2017 | Three countries participated for the first time: Antigua and Barbuda, Kiribati, and Nigeria. The Diaspora Pavilion was established, bringing together 19 artists from multinational backgrounds. |
| 2017 | French curator Christine Macel directed the Biennale with the theme 'Viva Arte Viva'. Franz Erhard Walther won the Golden Lion for best artist, and Carolee Schneemann received a posthumous Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement. |
| 2016 | Conclusion of the biennial period for the Venice Dance Biennale, returning to an annual format. |
| 2015 | Five new countries developed pavilions: Grenada, Mozambique, Seychelles, Mauritius, and Mongolia. Pavilions for Iraq, Ukraine, and Syria were entirely privately funded. |
| 2015 | Okwui Enwezor became the first African-born curator of the Biennale, commissioning special projects and programs throughout the Giardini. |
| 2013 | The Venice Biennale main exhibition budget was approximately $2.3 million, with an additional $2 million raised from private individuals, foundations, and philanthropists. The international exhibition budget was 13 million euros (approximately $14.2 million). |
| 2013 | Eleven new countries developed national pavilions: Angola, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Bahamas, Bahrain, Ivory Coast, Kosovo, Kuwait, Maldives, Paraguay, Tuvalu, and the Holy See. |
| 2013 | Italian curator Massimiliano Gioni directed the Biennale with the theme 'Il Palazzo Enciclopedico / The Encyclopedic Palace', inspired by Marino Auriti's architectural model. |
| February 2012 | Continuation of the special 54th Biennale commemorating the 150th Anniversary of Italian Unification at Padiglione Italia of Torino Esposizioni – Sala Nervi. |
| 2011 | India participated in the Venice Biennale for the first time. |
| 2011 | Swiss curator Bice Curiger curated the Biennale with the theme 'ILLUMInazioni – ILLUMInations'. |
| December 2011 | A special edition of the 54th Biennale was held at Padiglione Italia of Torino Esposizioni – Sala Nervi to commemorate the 150th Anniversary of Italian Unification, directed by Vittorio Sgarbi. |
| 2010 | Venice Dance Biennale transitions to a biennial format, moving away from annual events. |
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