Coimbra once again becomes a hub for contemporary art with the return of Anozero – Coimbra Biennial. From April 11 to July 5, the city opens to a series of exhibitions, encounters, and experiences that invite new ways of seeing the world. With free admission, the biennial spreads across different parts of the city, with its epicenter at the Monastery of Santa Clara-a-Nova and extending to venues such as Edifício Chiado, Sala da Cidade, Convento São Francisco, and the Botanical Garden.
In 2026, the theme emerges from an ancient linguistic root: *ghabh. From it comes a meaning that is both simple and profound: to hold, to give, to receive. Three gestures that only make sense together. Curated by Hans Ibelings and John Zeppetelli, with assistant curator Daniel Madeira, this edition proposes a rethinking of the idea of an exhibition. Not as a closed place, but as a space for connection, encounter, and transformation.
There is something essential in this idea of sharing. Giving always implies someone who receives. Receiving requires openness. And holding is the gesture that sustains everything else. Anozero’26 builds on this logic to explore how art and architecture create relationships: between works and spaces, between artists and audiences, between what we see and what we feel. In a time marked by extreme inequalities, the biennial offers a reflection on the importance of reciprocity, mutual aid, and the idea of community.
Across the city, each venue adds a new layer to the experience. The works presented engage with themes such as memory, emotion, and the relationship between image and experience, expanding the ways we see and feel.
More than bringing artists together, Anozero creates connections. Between disciplines, between languages, between people. Art intersects with architecture, thought with space, the individual with the collective. It is not about directly transforming the world, but about changing how we perceive it. About opening space for listening, questioning, and imagination.
Over three months, Coimbra becomes more than a backdrop and turns into part of the exhibition itself. A territory where ideas, perspectives, and experiences circulate.
Anozero’26 is not just an exhibition. It is an invitation. To hold, to give, and to receive.
To explore the full program, visit the official Anozero’26 schedule.
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