| Venice Biennale Biennale di Venezia (Italian) | |
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| Genre | Biennale; focuses on contemporary art, and includes events for art, contemporary dance, architecture, cinema, and theatre |
| Frequency | Annual; the main exhibition alternates every second year between art and architecture |
| Location(s) | Venice, Italy |
| Inaugurated | 30 April 1895 |
| Founder | City Council of Venice |
| Organised by | The Biennale Foundation |
| Website | www.labiennale.org |
The Venice Biennale (/ˌbiːɛˈnɑːleɪ, -li/; Italian: La Biennale di Venezia) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy, by the Biennale Foundation. It focuses on contemporary art, and includes events for art, contemporary dance, architecture, cinema, and theatre. Two main components of the festival are known as the Art Biennale (La Biennale d'Arte di Venezia) and the Architecture Biennale (La Biennale d'Architettura di Venezia), which are held in alternating years. The others – Biennale Musica, Biennale Teatro, Venice Film Festival, and Venice Dance Biennale – are held annually. The main exhibition held in Castello alternates between art and architecture (hence the name biennale), and there are around 30 permanent pavilions built by different countries.
The Biennale has been organised every year since 1895, which makes it the oldest of its kind. Since 2021, the Art Biennale has taken place in even years and the Architecture Biennale in odd years.