GOTHENBURG.- Göteborg International Biennial for Contemporary Art announced the theme, title, and participating artists for its 13th edition: a hand that is all our hands combined. Curated by Christina Lehnert, this edition of the Swedish biennial project addresses how artistic and collaborative practices can promote solidarity in today’s world and uphold freedom of speech for artists and those in minoritised positions.

The concept for Göteborg International Biennial for Contemporary Art has been developed at a time in Europe when solidarity—a fundamental principle of the welfare state, aimed at bridging the divide between “us” and “them”—is being undermined by biased practices and challenged by rhetoric promoting division and monoculture.

The biennial invites artistic practices that embody a sense of care extending beyond the personal, and that recognise the necessity of collective responsibility in shaping the present. Thought through and created in close collaboration with the artists, the project bears witness to various forms of silencing and exclusion, whether legally enforced or—as has been the case in recent months—silently normalised across Europe.

By deliberately moving away from a thematic curatorial framework, the biennial establishes itself as a forum for diverse artistic perspectives. The participating artists engage with the political conflicts and social movements that define our shared present: rising authoritarianism, polarisation, militarised aggression and instances of mass violence and persecution. These forces affect the institutional existence of art, as friendships and unions forged in artistic solidarity inevitably lead to far-reaching consequences and responses.

The biennial’s title a hand that is all our hands combined is drawn from the poem Personal Effects by Solmaz Sharif, articulating the shared accountability and responsibility that we carry and continue to bear. This responsibility transcends geographical and political boundaries, finding visibility and strength in alliances and models of solidarity.

He was moved like that
across a minefield –
moved by a hand we cannot see,

a hand that is all our hands combined.*

The 13th edition of Göteborg International Biennial for Contemporary Art takes Sharif’s poem as its starting point in considering how artistic practice can respond to political realities and reinforces the need to recognise our interconnected roles in shaping the present.

Participating artists: Noor Abed, Basma al-Sharif, Patricia L. Boyd, Simnikiwe Buhlungu, Raven Chacon, Moki Cherry, Siri Derkert, Hans Haacke, Hanni Kamaly, Rosalind Nashashibi, Thuy-Han Nguyen-Chi & Dalena Tran & Andrew Yong Hoon Lee, Christian Nyampeta, Lydia Ourahmane, Olivia Plender, Puppies Puppies (Jade Guanaro Kuriki-Olivo), Lala Rukh, Georgia Sagri, Helena Uambembe and, at the invitation of Jonelle Twum/Black Archives Sweden, Kiluanji Kia Henda, Tiago Mena Abrantes and Pamela Z.

From September 20 to November 30, 2025, the Göteborg International Biennial for Contemporary Art will present its programme in collaboration with Gothenburg City Library, Gothenburg Museum of Art, Göteborgs Konsthall, Röda Sten Konsthall and Skövde Art Museum, co-producers of the project.

*The poem “Personal Effects” is part of the poetry collection Look by Solmaz Sharif, Graywolf Press, 2016.

The Göteborg International Biennial for Contemporary Art (GIBCA) was founded in 2001. As a platform for the presentation of international contemporary art, GIBCA aims to be an important junction between local, national, and international discourses on issues of urgent collective interest. Each biennial consists of several exhibitions and programs hosted by established art institutions in Gothenburg, by independent initiatives, and in the public realm.

The biennial is produced by Röda Sten Konsthall in collaboration with Gothenburg City Library, Gothenburg Museum of Art, Göteborgs Konsthall and Skövde Art Museum, with main funding from City of Gothenburg, Region of West Sweden, and the Swedish Arts Council.

Christina Lehnert is curator at the Kunsthalle Baden-Baden since 2022. From 2018 to 2022, she served as a curator at Portikus in Frankfurt am Main. Lehnert has worked in numerous institutions, in Germany and Switzerland. In recent years, she has curated a series of exhibitions focused on art as a reflection of political moments, often exploring micro-narratives against the backdrop of larger socio-political issues. Her curatorial interests lie in sound and performance, as well as collective practices in the arts.