Who is Adriano Pedrosa, curator of the Venice Art Biennale 2024?

Adriano Pedrosa (Rio de Janeiro, 1965) will be the first Latin American to direct the Venice Art Biennale in 2024. The 60th edition of the Biennale follows a record-breaking edition curated by Cecilia Alemani, and leaves an important legacy in Pedrosa’s hands. The Board also announced the dates of the 60th International Art Exhibition, to be held from Saturday 20 April to Sunday 24 November 2024 (pre-opening 17-19 April). Pedrosa studied law and economics in Rio de Janeiro and specialised in Art and Critical Writing at the California Institute of the Arts. During his career he has written for Artforum, Flash Art, Mousse, Frieze and was recently awarded the 2023 Audrey Irmas Award for Curatorial Excellence by the Central for Curatorial Studies at Bard College in New York. Since 2014, he has been Artistic Director of the Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand (MASP) in Brazil, which under his direction has intensified research in ethnography and anthropology. For the MASP, Pedrosa has curated numerous temporary exhibitions dedicated to popular and vernacular art forms, including solo exhibitions dedicated to the works of Tarsila do Amaral, Anna Bella Geiger, Ione Saldanha, Maria Auxiliadora, Gertrudes Altschul, Beatriz Milhazes, Wanda Pimentel and Hélio Oiticia. The curator was also praised for his work in rearranging the permanent collection.  

Roberto Cicutto, President of the Venice Biennale, has expressed great esteem for Pedrosa, “known for the competence and originality he has shown in conceiving his exhibitions with a vision open to the contemporary, working from an observation point of the world that cannot disregard the nature of its place of origin”. Among the numerous positions held, Pedrosa was also assistant curator of the 24. Bienal de São Paulo (1998), curator in charge of exhibitions and collections at the Museu de Arte da Pampulha, Belo Horizonte (2000-2003), co-curator of the 27. Bienal de São Paulo (2006), curator of InSite_05 (San Diego Museum of Art, Centro Cultural Tijuana, 2005), artistic director of 2. Trienal de San Juan (2009), curator of 31. Panorama da Arte Brasileira-Mamõyaguara opá mamõ pupé (Museu de Arte Moderna, São Paulo, 2009), co-curator of 12. Istanbul Biennial, curator of the São Paulo Pavilion at the 9th. Shanghai Biennial (2012).  Pedrosa commented: “I am honored and humbled by this prestigious appointment, especially as the first Latin American to curate the International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, and in fact the first one based in the Southern Hemisphere. The Biennale is certainly the most important platform for contemporary art in the world, and it is an exciting challenge and a responsibility to embark on this project. I look forward to bringing artists to Venice and realizing their projects, as well as to working with the Biennale’s great team. For this unique opportunity, I am grateful to the Biennale President, Roberto Cicutto, as well as to the Institution’s Board”. 

Opening image: Adriano Pedrosa. Photo Daniel Cabrel, Courtesy Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand