Dopamine is the brain’s feel-good chemical – a catalyst for pleasure, reward and movement, like that irresistible urge to dance when your favourite song starts playing. At the Macao International Art Biennale 2025 (known as Art Macao), it’s also the driving force behind Dopamine: Fountain of Happiness, a kaleidoscopic Pop Art takeover at The Venetian Macao that invites visitors to revel in pure, unfiltered joy.
Featuring nine acclaimed artists from Asia, Europe and the US, the exhibition blends ancient Roman mythology with the beloved world of Sesame Street, transforming the resort’s main lobby and outdoor lagoon area into a vibrant, immersive playground. A highlight of Art Macao – a vivid example of why the city was named Culture City of East Asia 2025 – the show champions art that’s jubilant, relatable and accessible to all.
“As this exhibition reminds us, no matter your age, holding onto a childlike heart is essential, because true happiness lies in being true to yourself,” says Dr. Wilfred Wong, Executive Vice Chairman of Sands China Ltd. “We’ve transformed The Venetian Macao for this year’s Art Macao in hopes to spark and preserve those moments of joy – our very own dopamine.”
Feel the joy at The Venetian
Head over to The Venetian Macao to get in on the fun. Running through 15 October, Dopamine: Fountain of Happiness has turned both the open-air lagoon and grand lobby into a Pop Art playground. Headlining the show, internationally acclaimed duo Craig & Karl have teamed up with Sesame Street to create an explosion of colour, patterns and personality that spills across the integrated resort’s pillars, bridges, balconies and fountains.
Outside, the lagoon bridge and promenade have become a parade route of vibrant stripes, polka dots, and cartoon-bright lamppost wraps, flanked by technicolour columns and sculptures. Characters from the beloved children’s show pop up everywhere, including a big and bright Elmo sculpture made of fibreglass and Bert and Ernie “HI” inflatables waving a bright hello to passers-by from overhead.
Across the plaza near the Campanile Tower, monumental letters spelling “ART MACAO” are brought to life with the duo’s signature geometric colour-blocking, while life-sized Sesame Street-inspired crossover sculptures by artists from the US, UK, Japan, and beyond line the arcade’s arches. This is the first time many of these creators have shown work in Macao, adding to the sense of excitement for local art-lovers.
Inside The Venetian’s ornate lobby, the contrast is just as imaginative. Renaissance-style ceilings and marble columns, now wrapped in electric colours, frame the scene, while a fibreglass “Two-Headed Monster” sculpture, grinning with a smiley-face shield, stands ready to welcome visitors into the fun.
Dialling up the dopamine
The Sesame Street collaboration is more than a playful reference – it’s a way to tap into a shared cultural memory that spans generations. Since its debut in 1969, the impactful children’s programme has reached audiences in over 150 countries, combining educational storytelling with the lovable charm of its furry Muppet cast.
“When we mention dopamine, we naturally think of bright colours and playful characters,” says Dr. Wong. “Beloved across generations and around the world, Sesame Street has, for decades, taught positive values through its ‘edutainment’ approach – from grandparents to young children, it is cherished by all.”
Craig & Karl’s punchy aesthetic, built on eye-catching colour fields and graphic wit, is a natural medium for these timeless TV icons. In their hands, Elmo, Cookie Monster, and other familiar faces are reimagined as objets d’art that bridge the worlds of fine art and play.
Set against the grand, theatrical backdrop of The Venetian Macao, the artworks take on a cinematic presence that’s hard to miss. In this open space, they become part of the everyday flow of guests and visitors, stopping passersby in their tracks, prompting selfies and conversations, and showing just how delightful public art can be.
Macao artists shine bright
While Dopamine: Fountain of Happiness draws on an impressive roster of global names, it also puts Macao’s own creative voices in the spotlight. The works of local artists like Hei Lok and Bibi Lei shine alongside those of their peers from the US, UK, Japan, South Korea, Italy and China, showing off the city’s artistic talent.
A leading figure in Macao’s art scene, Lok is known for his finely detailed depictions of the city’s landscapes and cultural life, as well as his role in fostering artistic exchange. In Dopamine, he creates one of the crossover sculptures displayed beneath the arches, pairing his own figure in Apollo’s ornament, palette in hand, with Elmo at his side.
Bibi Lei is known for her pastel-infused, dreamlike palettes. She often paints with her fingers, bringing a sense of free-spirited play to the process. At the heart of many of her works is an original character – a “little super girl” who bravely ventures through fantastical worlds of Lei’s own creation. In Dopamine, she makes a three-dimensional debut, joining Sesame Street’s Abby on a shared plinth in one of the crossover sculptures.
More Art Macao on the Cotai Strip
For those seeking even more creativity, Beyond the Frame offers a compelling counterpoint to The Venetian’s Pop Art spectacle. This collateral exhibition at Sands Gallery – set on the 6th floor of The Grand Suites at Four Seasons next door – remains visually connected through vivid colours and playful personalities, yet shifts the tempo to something quieter and more contemplative.
Featuring more than 60 works from six international artists, as well as Macao’s Lei, the exhibition explores perspective and cultural exchange through an array of paintings, installations and mixed media. It invites visitors to slow down, linger and engage with art in a more intimate gallery setting.
Together, these twin exhibitions – one jubilant and expansive, the other introspective and deliberate – capture the breadth of Macao’s cultural life in its year as Culture City of East Asia 2025.
“From the very beginning, we believed the most important part of promoting art is accessibility, bringing it closer to people and creating moments that resonate with the public,” says Dr. Wong. “After all, art comes from life, and contemporary art has the power to meet audiences where they are – even here on the Cotai Strip – in unexpected encounters.”
