Artists and curators keen to take part in the local component of this year’s Art Macao biennale are invited to apply at the Macao Museum of Art (MAM) by 6 May, according to the Cultural Affairs Bureau. Up to six projects will be selected.
Selected projects will receive funding of up to 500,000 patacas for exhibition expenses and will be automatically considered to represent the city at the 61st Venice Biennale, taking place in 2026.
The Local Curatorial Project is a key part of the SAR’s biennale and aims to “nurture local curatorial talent, showcase the achievements of Macao’s art scene, and promote local artistic development,” the bureau said in a statement.
The fourth edition of the city-wide art festival will be divided into six sections: the Main Exhibition, the Special Exhibition, the City Pavilion, the Public Art Exhibition, the Collateral Exhibition and the Local Curatorial Project.
[See more: Wong Weng Cheong’s journey from Macao to the 2024 Venice Biennale]
Proposals for the latter must align with the event’s theme, “Hey, what brings you here?,” and at least half of an applying curatorial team’s members must be Macao residents. Proposed projects will need to run for a minimum of eight weeks with a budget of 500,000 patacas or less. Participants will be responsible for arranging suitable venues.
The results of the application process would be announced in June, and accepted projects will be expected to open between 19 July and 21 September 2025. More details, including application forms, are available via this dedicated webpage.
First held in 2019, Art Macao works with internationally acclaimed artists from around the world to showcase their work across the city’s casino-resorts, museums and public spaces. The last iteration, held in 2023, featured works by more than 200 artists hailing from 20 countries and regions.
One of them was Macao’s representative at last year’s Venice Biennale, Wong Weng Cheong. His dystopian installation, Above Zobeide, is on display at MAM until 30 April. Macao-born Wong collaborated with the curator Chang Chan for their Local Curatorial Project at Art Macao.
