The 18th Lyon Biennale of Contemporary Art will run from September - December 2026, with a focus on artists from the Pacific Ocean axis. Berlin-based Australian, Catherine Nichols has been appointed as Curator of the edition of the Biennale.
"The Lyon Biennale of Contemporary Art has long been an ambitious space for artistic enquiry and political imagination, a site where art engages with the world, indeed with the planet, in all its complexity. [...] As I immerse myself in Lyon and the artistic, cultural, scientific and economic dialogues that shape its layered geography, I am ever more inspired by the opportunity to bring new voices, ideas and practices into the conversation. I am profoundly grateful to the Biennale for inviting me to join the team in dreaming up a new Biennale edition, one that is at once situated and connected, audacious yet responsive, and, above all, attuned to the urgencies and possibilities of the present."
Catherine Nichols
About the Lyon Biennale
Founded in 1991, the Lyon Biennale of Contemporary Art is considered one of the foremost international events devoted to contemporary art and has become one of the world's top 5 biennials. Held in several landmark venues across greater Lyon, France, in musuems and in public space, as well as in quirkier locations opening specially for the occaision, the Biennale has deep local roots. The relationship between art and territory is also developed through a raft of projects where the encounter between artists and residents is central to a co-creation approach in towns and organisations in metro area and the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region.
17th Lyon Biennale (2024) in brief:
- 80 artists from 36 countries participated, with 40% under the age of 35.
- of the 280 artworks presented, over 100 were shown for the first time, including 70 commissioned by La Biennale de Lyon
- 285,000 visitors to the various venues (excluding public spaces)
- 2.7million discovered art works displayed in public spaces
- 32% of visitors aged under 26 years.
About Catherine Nichols
Catherine Nichols is an internationally acclaimed arts and literary scholar, curator and writer, whose work spans contemporary art, cultural history, and interdisciplinary research. Known for her ability to weave compelling narratives through exhibitions and cultural projects, Nichols has consistently explored art’s potential to address complex social, political, and environmental issues while fostering spaces for thought and conviviality.
In 2022, Nichols served as curator for the European Nomadic Biennial Manifesta 14 Prishtina, titled it matters what worlds world worlds: how to tell stories otherwise, spanning 25 sites of cultural significance that examined the transformative power of storytelling. From 2019 to 2021, she co-led Beuys 2021: 100 Jahre Joseph Beuys, a critical enquiry into the legacy of German artist Joseph Beuys, alongside Eugen Blume.
Nichols has also organised numerous monographic and thematic art exhibitions. These include Beuys: We are the Revolution (2008), The End of the 20th Century: The Best Is Yet to Come (2013) and Capital: Debt—Territory—Utopia (2016) for Hamburger Bahnhof—Nationalgalerie der Gegenwart — Berlin (in collaboration with Eugen Blume); and Everyone is an Artist: Cosmopolitical Exercises with Joseph Beuys (in collaboration with Isabelle Malz and Eugen Blume) at K20 Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen in Düsseldorf.
An accomplished writer and editor, Nichols has published widely on contemporary art and has co-edited and authored several key publications. Highlights include The New Designer: Design as a Profession for Stiftung Bauhaus Dessau (2023); Otherwise (2022), the companion book to Manifesta 14 Prishtina; Shine on me: Wir und die Sonne (2018) and Black Mountain College: An Interdisciplinary Experiment, 1933–1957 (2015).
Nichols is currently a curator at Hamburger Bahnhof—Nationalgalerie der Gegenwart, Berlin. Her recent projects at the museum include Alexandra Pirici—Attune (2024), Joseph Beuys—Werke aus der Sammlung der Nationalgalerie (2024), and Nationalgalerie: Eine Sammlung für das 21. Jahrhundert (2023). In 2025, she is curating solo shows featuring Colombian artist Delcy Morelos and Kosovar artist Petrit Halilaj.
Partners
The research visit for Lyon Biennale's Artistic Director, Isabelle Bertolotti, and Curator, Catherine Nichols, has been organised by the Lyon Biennale. Their itinerary is being developed in partnership with the Office of Contemporary Art Aotearoa working with Taarati Taiaroa (Ringahāpai Kaitakatū Ngā Toi Māori | Assistant Curator Contemporary Māori Art at the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery), Simon Gennard (Ringahāpai Kaitakatū (Tāreitanga me ngā Kohikohinga Hōu) | Assistant Curator Contemporary Art and Collections at the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery) and Ruth Buchanan (Kaitohu | Director, Artspace Aotearoa).