Pavilion of the Republic of Kosovo
61st International Art Exhibition
La Biennale di Venezia

May 9 – November 22, 2026
Chiesa di Santa Maria del Pianto, Venice

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La Biennale di Venezia

The Chiesa di Santa Maria del Pianto is an octagonal church and monastery facing the Venetian lagoon, designed by architect Francesco Contino and completed in 1658. Dedicated to Saint Mary the Tearful, the church was built amid wartime uncertainty. In the early 19th century, the complex was repurposed as a school, hospital, barracks, and even a storage facility, undergoing significant alterations before its reconsecration in 1851. Following the departure of the nuns in 1970, the church was closed to the public and has remained inaccessible for decades. Hard Teeth marks its rare reopening, activating a site long shaped by cycles of devotion, abandonment, and institutional deferral.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Brilant Milazimi (b. 1994, Gjilan) translates his perception of the world into images that are at once bitter, tender, darkly humorous, and unsettling. Drawing on the logic of the unconscious and fictional imaginaries, his paintings articulate a sinister yet poetic vision of contemporary life, marked by exaggerated physiognomies, animal presences, and the recurring motif of clenched teeth—symbols through which social tension and unresolved conflict surface. Milazimi studied visual arts at the University of Prishtina. Recent solo exhibitions include Brownie Project Gallery, Shanghai (two-person exhibition, 2025); Storefront Viewing Room, kurimanzutto, New York (2025); Stacion – Center for Contemporary Art, Prishtina (2024; 2020); LambdaLambdaLambda, Prishtina (2023; 2019); Paul Soto, Los Angeles (2023); LA MAISON DE RENDEZ-VOUS, Brussels (2022); and Ermes-Ermes, Rome (2021). He has participated in major group exhibitions including the 5th Autostrada Biennale, Prizren (2025); Galleria Continua, Paris (2025); Manifesta 14, Prishtina (2022); and the Ludwig Museum, Budapest (2020). In 2020, he received the Young Visual Artist Award in Kosovo, and in 2024 he was a resident at the Art Explora Foundation in collaboration with the Cité internationale des arts, Paris.

ABOUT THE CURATOR

José Esparza Chong Cuy is a curator, writer, and architect from Mexico. Since 2018 he works as Executive Director and Chief Curator at New York’s Storefront for Art and Architecture. Between 2019–2025 he was part of the curatorial council of the Museo Tamayo in Mexico City. Prior to his current role at Storefront, he was Associate Curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago and the Museo Jumex in Mexico City. In 2013 he was co-curator of the Lisbon Architecture Triennale. Between 2007–2012 he also lived in New York and held positions as Intern and Curatorial Associate at Storefront for Art and Architecture, Research Fellow at the New Museum, and contributing editor at Domus magazine. He holds an MS in Critical, Curatorial, and Conceptual Practices in Architecture from Columbia University.

LOCATION AND CONTACT

Chiesa di Santa Maria del Pianto, Venice 

For press enquiries please contact: 

International press: Zaida Violan,
International Press Officer
[email protected]

Regional press & digital communication:
Rina Meta
[email protected]

Physical copies of textual materials about the Kosovo Pavilion can be sent to: 

Galeria Kombëtare e Kosovës Str. Agim Ramadani, no. 360
10000 Prishtinë, Kosovo
redirect: Pavilion of the Republic of Kosovo

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