Turner Prize winning Preston artist to represent Great Britain at global art festival

Her work will go on display next year in the famous Italian city’s British Pavilion.

“I’m determined to have a great time doing it,” Lubaina said. “It’s such a dream venue. Venice is everybody’s favourite city, and the pavilion itself is so British, on the top of that little hill, trying to be very grand and actually quite domestic. I love making shows that work with the place they’re in.”

Following her Turner Prize win in 2017, Lubaina received a CBE for her contributions to the arts in 2018.

Professor Graham Baldwin, Vice-Chancellor at the University, said: “I’m absolutely delighted the British Council has recognised Lubaina’s amazing work and chosen her to represent Great Britain at such a prestigious international art exhibition.

“She has been a driving force for the Black British Art Movement during her illustrious career and I know Lubaina will create a fantastic eye-catching and thought-provoking new exhibition.”

The Venice Biennale attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors every year and will run from 9 May to 22 November 2026.

Emma Dexter, the British Council Collection and Commissioner of the British Pavilion, said: “Himid pushes the boundaries of painting practice through sound and sculptural installation, incorporating new materials, textures, narratives and formats in her work.

“Combining a radical optimism with social critique, she will transform the Pavilion with her vibrant, articulate and spatially dynamic artworks. Himid’s exhibitions take the visitor on an exploratory journey, which is why it’s so exciting to imagine how she will use the enfilade of six spaces in the British Pavilion.”

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Turner Prize winning Preston artist to represent Great Britain at global art festival

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