Kochi Biennale Foundation announces the complete list of participating artists for the sixth edition of Kochi-Muziris Biennale
Kochi / October 10, 2025
Kochi, Oct 10: The Kochi Biennale Foundation is pleased to announce the complete list of participating artists for for the time being, the sixth edition of Kochi-Muziris Biennale (KMB). The Biennale will feature 66 artists/collectives from over 25 countries, under the curatorial direction of Nikhil Chopra and HH Art Spaces, Goa. The exhibition, which is scheduled to open on 12 December 2025 and run through 31 March 2026, will unfold across multiple venues in Kochi, Kerala. KMB is the largest contemporary art biennale in South Asia, and the first of its kind in India.
This edition is oriented around the body, a bearer of memory and materiality, a site of encounter, and a witness to temporality. Within the curatorial framework, the body extends metaphorically into the landscape itself, to Kochi, a coastal port city built on movements of every kind – human and non-human – whose fragmented geography is stitched together by rivers, canals and backwaters, and its sediments borne by waves of colonial incursions, maritime trade, migrations, socio-political upheavals, and textures of its communal life.
The curatorial team notes, “Our invitation to companions was to work with Kochi’s climates, conditions, and resource realities; to make time, think nimbly, and collaborate locally. Around 50 new commissions are set across many first-time venues in neighbourhoods animated with trade, people, and movement. We draw from the past editions and their lives, and continue to see the exhibition as a growing organism constantly nourished by ideas, emotions, and actions. We also hold space for grief and mourning through this transformative time.”
Participating artists for the Sixth Edition of Kochi-Muziris Biennale:
- Abul Hisham
- Aditya Puthur
- Adrián Villar Rojas
- Ali Akbar PN
- Anja Ibsch and Grüntaler9
- Arti Kadam
- Athina Koumparouli
- Bani Abidi and Anupama Kundoo
- Bhasha Chakrabarti
- Biraaj Dodiya
- Birender Yadav
- Cinthia Marcelle
- Dhiraj Rabha
- Dima Srouji and Piero Tomassoni
- Dineo Seshee Bopape
- Faiza Hasan
- Gieve Patel
- Gulam Mohammed Sheikh
- Hicham Berrada
- Himanshu Jamod
- Hiwa K
- Huma Mulji
- Ibrahim Mahama
- Jayashree Chakravarty
- Jompet Kuswidananto
- Jyoti Bhatt
- Khageswar Rout
- Kirtika Kain
- Kulpreet Singh
- Lakshmi Nivas Collective
- LaToya Ruby Frazier
- Lionel Wendt
- Malu Joy (Sister Roswin CMC)
- Mandeep Raikhy
- Maria Hassabi
- Marina Abramović
- Mark Prime
- Matthew Krishanu
- Meenu James
- Minam Apang
- Mónica de Miranda
- Monika Correa
- Moonis Ahmad Shah
- Naeem Mohaiemen
- Nari Ward
- Niroj Satpathy
- Nityan Unnikrishnan
- Otobong Nkanga
- Pallavi Paul
- Panjeri Artists' Union
- Prabhakar Kamble
- Raja Boro
- Ratna Gupta
- Sabitha Kadannappally
- Sandra Mujinga
- Sayan Chanda
- RB Shajith
- Sheba Chhachhi and Janet Price
- Shiraz Bayjoo
- Smitha Babu
- Sujith SN
- Tino Sehgal
- Utsa Hazarika
- Vinoja Tharmalingam
- Yasmin Jahan Nupur
- Zarina Muhammad
Over the coming weeks, we will release venue maps, programmes, public activations, and other itineraries.
Quotes:
Dr V Venu, Chairperson, Kochi Biennale Foundation: “We are proud to present this list of distinct voices from all over the globe, each resonant with courage, care, and reflection. We envisage the sixth edition of the Biennale not just as a moment of celebration, but as part of a long-term vision for sustaining artistic practices, community, and cultural dialogue in Kochi. Working closely with local communities, artists, and institutions, we aim to create a Biennale that grows, learns, and leaves a lasting impact on the city and people."
“We are pleased to unveil this remarkable list of artists for the sixth Kochi-Muziris Biennale," said Thomas Varghese, CEO of the Kochi Biennale Foundation. "Over months of conversation and collaboration, we have seen these ideas evolve into projects of astonishing depth and resonance.”
“This edition brings together a dynamic constellation of both established and emerging voices from across the world. Nikhil and HH Art Spaces have conceptualised it with remarkable clarity, through works that integrate diverse media, experimental performances, and new ways of imagining what an exhibition can be,” said Bose Krishnamachari, President of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale. “It reflects a spirit of solidarity and collective endeavour, marking the first time that a collective has been invited to build a creative site. ‘For the Time Being’ celebrates local energies, global collaborations, and the layered histories that continue to shape and sustain the Biennale,” he added.
ENDS
