Michael Armitage
Palazzo Grassi
From 29 March 2026 to 10 January 2027
Curated by Jean-Marie Gallais, curator, Pinault Collection, in collaboration with Hans-Ulrich Obrist, art director, Serpentine Galleries, for the catalogue, and Caroline Bourgeois, advisor, Pinault Collection, and Michelle Mlati, art historian
At Palazzo Grassi, Pinault Collection brings together an exceptional group of works by Kenyan-born painter Michael Armitage (born in 1984), created over the past ten years. Here, references to East Africa blend with mythology and Western art history in dense, flamboyant compositions, often monumental in scale. Some works address sensitive subjects from Kenya's recent history. The exhibition, which includes large-format paintings and drawings, is structured around themes that run through Armitage's practice, such as the expression of politics in individual and collective narratives, mythology and sexuality, and migration issues. At the Palazzo Grassi, Michael Armitage presents a comprehensive overview of his practice, interweaving personal memory, collective history and symbolic imagination to give free rein to visions and landscapes that are both inhabited and hallucinatory.
Palazzo Grassi and Punta della Dogana are open every day, apart from Tuesdays, from 10 am to 7 pm. Last admission at 6 pm. Closed on 25 December.
Exceptionally, on Wednesday 8 October, Palazzo Grassi will close at 5.30 pm (last admission at 4.30 pm).
One admission ticket to visit the exhibitions during the opening months:
Full price: €18
Reduced price: €15
20-26 year-olds ticket: €7
Free admission for Members Pinault Collection and visitors under 20 (check here for school groups).
Free admission for residents and students in Venice: on Wednesday, on the first and last day of the exhibition.
Ask the cultural mediators if you have any questions about the exhibitions. The service is free and operates daily from 11 am to 1 pm and from 4 pm to 6 pm.
Discover the wide range of guided tours and other activities starting from €80 on the dedicated page.