“I believe that art is beyond meaning”
ArtReview sent a questionnaire to artists and curators exhibiting in and curating the various national pavilions of the 2026 Venice Biennale, the responses to which will be published daily in the leadup to and during the Venice Biennale, which runs from 9 May through 22 November.
Armen Agop is representing Egypt; the pavilion is in the Giardini.
Celebrating Visions. Versace partners with ArtReview to share stories from the 2026 Venice Biennale.
ArtReview Tell ArtReview what you plan to exhibit in Venice. What has influenced or inspired you?
Armen Agop I will exhibit what I have been working on for many years: works that are deprived of narrative or message, that are more concerned with the internal world than the external world. Viewers will be asked to be silent and not to take photos. I believe that after a moment, the silence will activate the inner world of the viewer.
AR In what ways (if at all) does your work relate to the theme of the Biennale exhibition, In Minor Keys?
AA My work is concerned with slowness, soberness and internal energy, so it happens to be aligned with some aspects of the late curator Koyo Kouoh’s theme. For me it’s an interesting cultural meeting, which revealed what I believed in for decades and was looking for.
I don’t see art as entertainment. I believe that art can offer values and experiences beyond entertainment and doesn’t need to be reduced to a reactionary activity. I think that is the core of Kouoh’s vision. I believe that art nourishes our souls. Being in agreement in such a deep vision, regardless of distance or cultural backgrounds, demonstrates to me a common value of what I see as the contemporary cultural condition. What appears minor in tone or form can be immense in meaning.
AR Why is the Venice Biennale still important, if at all?
AA It’s one of the oldest international exhibitions with a global gathering of artists from all over the world. It is unique in scale and dimension and all that gives depth of importance showing the current interests and experiments of the artists in their diversity.
AR What role does a national pavilion play at a time of increasing confrontational nationalisms? Is it about expressing difference or commonality?
AA The whole world is composed of different cultures, some are isolated and others merged with each other according to geographical and environmental situations. The Biennale, in a way, gathers a large part of different cultures; being in harmony or contradiction is not important. The important thing is that they can exist individually next to each other, sometimes with big differences other times with enormous harmony. The common factor is always the human factor and each one has a right to live his humanity in his own way.
AR Who, for you, is the most important artist (in any discipline) that your country has produced?
AA All the unknown artists who managed to create a civilization which went beyond the individual ego. Growing up in Egypt, being surrounded by artworks from different historical eras and with different beliefs, led me to the conclusion to not stop in front of one work or one person. A civilization in its wider meaning is much more significant than the individual.
AR What is something you want people to know about your nation that they might not know already?
AA Egyptians are some of the most generous and welcoming people on earth. My grandfather was a survivor of the Armenian genocide by Turkey and arrived in Egypt as a refugee, where the Armenians were welcomed. Egypt has always been generous and hospitable with foreigners – to the extent that many foreigners have reached higher positions such as kings and queens – which developed a cultural open-mindedness that contributed to the rich layers of identity. Representing Egypt therefore has symbolic meaning as a demonstration of cultural coexistence that transcends geographical boundaries.
AR Given that you are exhibiting in a national pavilion, is there something (a quality or an issue or attitude) that distinguishes the art of that nation from that of others? That makes it particular? Are there specific contexts that it responds to? Or do you think that art is a universal language that goes beyond social, political or geographic boundaries?
AA I believe that art is beyond meaning.
AR What, other than art, are you looking forward to seeing – or doing – while you are in Venice?
AA In Venice you can’t not think about art. Venice is like an enormous artwork with many interactions both physically and visually. The dynamic interactions between all the islands and the people creates a very unique energy. Wandering walks is one of the most interesting things I look forward to doing in Venice.
AR Could you give us a brief overview of your average working day while creating your presentation in Venice?
AA My day usually swings between the known and the unknown. Since I am also the curator of the pavilion, there are a lot of organizational issues that I have had to take care of that brings me back to reality. I welcome the evenings when I can focus on my work.
AR Can art really change the world?
AA I believe in art that can transmit something bigger than you and me. Art can exist in different ways, but the one I am generally driven to is the art that leads us to unite with ourselves. And each time one of us experiences this deep engagement with an artwork, their inner world transforms so these microcosmic transformations, in a way, is a transformation of the macrocosm.
The 61st Venice Biennale runs 9 May through 22 November 2026
